Jackson came in one year ago to be the offensive coordinator and the offense went from being absolutely futile and down right anemic. Also, there was a general consensus that Hue was a possible future candidate for the Oakland Raiders HC position. That day has come and it feels pretty good.
Al Davis naturally has a fantastic quote as he welcomes in Jackson:
"The fire in Hue will set a flame that will burn for a long time in the hearts and minds of the Raider football team and the Raider Nation."
I'll take that one with a grain of salt, but I still think it's a good hire and possibly the only hire Davis really had. Let's be honest, no head coach in their heart of hearts wants to be micro-managed by Al Davis. Davis really likes Hue and I think the players do to. He should have the respect of the players. He's probably not as liked in the locker room as Cable but I think after what he did for the offense last year, the players know that he knows what he's doing. It's not as if he's a random guy coming in to run the team like Lane Kiffin was. Hue Jackson is a familiar, respected face in that locker room. I think the promotion of Hue Jackson gives the Raiders a chance to bring back some key free agents like Michael Bush, Nnamdi Asomugha and Richard Seymour. I really like the hire.
 |
| "Ya get the best playas and the best coaches and ya tell 'em, Just Win Baby." |
The Raiders scored more than the double the amount of points in 2010 than they did in 2009 when Tom Cable was calling plays. RB Darren McFadden burst on the scene finally this year and has become a rising star in my opinion. I've gone as far as to say that if I were a GM, there's no one I'd want more than D-Dawg to build my team around. He's only 23 years old and runs with a purpose. Gotta love it.
Jason Campbell also played pretty well under Hue Jackson and you know Al loved that idea. Campbell had 13 TDs and just 8 INTs in fairly limited action. Campbell was Davis' pet and many feel that Campbell has the ability to lead this team for a while. I agree for the most part, but I would like to see the Raiders draft a formidable back-up in the later rounds of the upcoming draft. Bruce "Doc B" Gradkowski, though I really like the dude, just can't stay healthy to save his life. Kyle Boller is...Kyle Boller. He has a smokebomb of a wife (Carrie Prejean) but that's about all he can say for himself.
The official introduction of Hue Jackson will come later today in Alameda.
On another note, it is being reported that Oakland is likely to bring in Al Saunders for the now vacant offensive coordinator position. It'll be like the Packers OC position, mainly just a right hand man to the head coach and playcaller. Saunders is pretty respected name in the eyes of Al Davis and around the NFL. He should help the offense as well.
-Mikko
