Since the moment Jon Gruden became the head man for the Oakland Raiders, the expectations of the team have skyrocketed around the Bay Area. Some might not like the hire, citing the fact he hasn’t coached in a decade, but there is a massive contingent that do.
NFL Network’s Kyle Brandt might be one of the biggest Gruden supporters of late considering his recent comments on air connecting Oakland and the Super Bowl.
“I am going to take a shot,” Brandt said on Wednesday. “A team that didn’t make the playoffs that could win the whole dang thing. I am talking about the Super Bowl...I am going to say the Raiders. Screw it, I am going to go with the Oakland Raiders.”
Despite what seems to be a rash quote above with the “screw it,” Brandt presented reasons for his hot take starting with the defense that he thinks people are quick to throw under the bus.
“So last year, two guys, Gareon Conley and Obi Melifonwu, both drafted and both injured for pretty much the entire season so they are getting them back this year,” Brandt said. “In addition to the guys at the top, they got a guy named Arden Key in the third round who fell, first round grade because off-the-field concerns. They got another guy named Maurice Hurst in the fifth round. Fell because of a heart condition. So what I am saying is there is going to be a huge new influx of talent onto defense for Oakland.”
The improved defense will be nice but he sees recently overlooked Derek Carr as the driving force for the improved team.
“Two years ago on the NFL Top 100 Derek Carr was number nine,” Brandt continued. “Number freaking nine. Top 10. Voted by his peers. If the Carr-Gruden relationship looks anything like maybe the Goff/McVay relationship or the Gruden/Gannon relationship. Guys, 2016 we all thought they were going to the AFC title game. We were ready for Patriots-Raiders. [Carr] breaks his ankle it’s over. Don’t think about his last year as much. Think about a new head coach with a 2016 Derek Carr. They could be the guys.”
Raider Nation, think about it this way as well. Can Carr have a worse season than 2017 with two proven offensive minds on the staff? Unlikely.
With all this new talent and more than competent coaching on defense can the defense be worse? Unlikely.
It might be tough to say the Raiders will be in the Super Bowl, but correct to say they will be vastly improved.
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