Oakland Raiders bringing in Green Bay Packers’ Reggie McKenzie as new general manager – NFL Update
The Oakland Raiders will be bringing in the director of football operations for Green Bay Packers, Reggie McKenzie as their next general manager (GM). This was reported by the ESPN network on Thursday night, January 5, 2012.
Changes in the team had been expected long since the team’s owner, Al Davis, died in October of 2011.
Davis had been the general manager of the team until his death, after which coach, Hue Jackson, had moved in to offer the services of a GM, but that was not possible on a long term basis, which had the team on the lookout for a new person to take over the
vacant position.
According to the news, all three executives of the Raiders, Ron Wolf, Ken Herock and John Madden who were assigned the task of looking for a new GM voiced their support for McKenzie.
Wolf in fact even took to the newspaper to announce his support.
"Reggie's a tremendous evaluator. He can tell you who can play and who can't play. That's what it's all about. Some can write reports but can't tell you who can play. Whatever that is, he has that. He has a feel", Wolf said.
Talks between McKenzie and the Raiders had been going on for a week and there are a few conditions that still have to be chalked out. The details of McKenzie’s role in the team are unclear as of yet. It is also unclear as exactly to what extent he will have
a say in the teams’ decisions.
The arrival of a new general manager usually means that he tries to bring in his own head coach but that hardly seems to worry Jackson, who is quite sure of his future with the Raiders.
"I know people say, 'If they hire a G.M. then he's going to want to bring in his head coach.' Whoever comes here, I think it's going to be somebody who wants to share the same vision as I do", Jackson said.
McKenzie, a 48-year-old former NFL player, played as a linebacker for the Raiders from 1985 to 1988. He then played for the Arizona Cardinals from 1989-1990 and spent a year playing for the San Francisco 49ers in 1992.
The Raiders are also expected to bring in changes to defensive coordinators and in their defence strategy.
Their defence proved to be the most vulnerable one this season, breaking the Kansas City Chiefs' record for highest number of penalties this season.
Oakland’s defence has been allowing 5.0 yards per carry and thus, have become one of the four teams to do so.
They have also failed to surround the opponent’s quarterback and rushing offence, allowing 30 touchdown passes this season alone. The Raiders have committed 163 penalties as well and forfeited 1,358 yards.
From all this, it seems that one of the casualties could possibly be defensive coordinator, Chuck Bresnahan, but no final decision has so far been made.
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