Many have tried and failed, but it is up to Gus Bradley to solve the Raiders’ long-standing defensive problems.
Bradley was hired by coach Jon Gruden on Tuesday as the Raiders’ new defensive coordinator, Bay Area News Group learned. The Raiders have confirmed Bradley’s addition to the staff.
Defensive coordinator for the Los Angeles Chargers for the past three years, Bradley succeeds interim coordinator Rod Marinelli, who took over when Paul Guenther was fired with three games remaining in the 2020 season.
Guenther was Gruden’s pick as the defensive coordinator when he returned to coaching in 2018. The Raiders have been at the bottom of the NFL defensive rankings all season, Gruden fired Guenther after a 44-27 loss to Indianapolis Colts when both teams were in the playoff contenders.
Bradley and former Seattle defense coordinator Kris Richard were the only known candidates interviewed.
It’s up to Bradley to improve on a Raiders defense that has been weak for most of the last quarter of a century, with just a few exceptions. Marinelli is expected to remain in the team as a defensive line coach.
Bradley, 50, earned his first NFL job in Jon Gruden’s team with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2006 as a quality control coach under Monte Kiffin. Bradley had been the defensive coordinator for North Dakota.
He moved in as a full-back, but lost his job when Gruden and his staff were relocated a month after a 31-24 loss to the Raiders to close out the 2008 season.
At Kiffin’s recommendation, Bradley was interviewed by first-year Seattle coach Jim Mora, who was impressed enough to hire him as a defensive coordinator.
Monte says, “JL, listen to me, I have a guy here in Tampa who’s one of, if not the best football coaches I’ve ever worked with,” Mora told the Seattle Post-Ingelligencer. “He’s a unique coach in life. You need to talk to him.”
Although Bradley had no experience as an NFL coordinator, Mora hired him. When he was fired after a season, Bradley kept his position under Pete Carroll.
With the 2009-12 Seahawks, Bradley, under Carroll’s guidance, formed a defense that included young talents such as Kam Chancellor, Richard Sherman, Earl Thomas, KJ Wright and Bobby Wagner. Seattle led the NFL in scoring (15.3 points per game) in 2012 and went 7-9 to 11-5.
Bradley then spent four seasons as head coach with Jacksonville, going 14-48, before being fired. He then joined Anthony Lynn as Chargers defensive coordinator.
Casey Hayward, a Chargers colleague, told USA Today at the Pro Bowl in 2017 that Bradley came in with a thumb up from Sherman.
“He just said, ‘Man, you’re going to love this guy!’ You will be willing to run through a wall for him, because that is the kind of person he is, ”Hayward said. “It simply came to our notice then. He said it was a great mix for a defender because he would mix things up. He will play a few (cover) three, he will play a man. He said that Gus will mix things up and bring different pressures. ”
There are countless ways to statistically classify a defense, with two of the most basic points allowed and courts allowed.
The Raiders were ranked 30th in points allowed in 2020 and have not been below number 20 since 2006, when they were ranked 18th. They ranked fairly consistently in the 1920s in terms of the yard, and previous values are the number 11. ranked under John Marshall in 2010.
The year 2006 was a statistical event in that the Raiders, in addition to being ranked 18th in allowed points, ranked 3rd in the yard. That season, under Art Shell, the Raiders were so poor on offense that opponents realized once the lead reached 10 points, the game was essentially over and they spent more on the timer than trying to score.
Only twice in the last 30 years have the Raiders had a top 10 defense in terms of footage and points. They were ninth in points and eighth on the field in 1996 under the late Fred Whittingham, but finished 7-9 largely due to injuries to defender Jeff Hostetler.
The other time was 1990, when under Dave Adolph, the Raiders were number 7 in points and number 4 in the yard. They were 12-4 that season and the defensive staff includes Greg Townsend, Howie Long, Jerry Robinson and Terry McDaniel.
Bradley has the following players under contract for 2021, ranked by CP salary number: defender Cory Littleton ($ 13.7 million), corner kick Lamarcus Joyner ($ 11.2 million), defensive Carl Nassib (9.5 million) dollars), defensive Clelin Ferrell ($ 8.5 million), defender Nick Kwiatkoski ($ 7 million).
Other young players in their draft-draft contracts that are likely to be key pieces for 2021 include safety Johnathan Abram ($ 3.1 million), defender Damon Arnette ($ 3 million), defender Trayvon Mullen (1.9 million) dollars) and defensive end Maxx Crosby ($ 1 million).
The Raiders have spent much more freely on offense than defense since Gruden’s arrival, and currently, contract players are $ 115.5 million below the salary cap, with $ 70.6 allocated for defense according to overthecap.com.
In the last two seasons, the Raiders have made several significant defensive signings in free agent, especially Joyner, Littleton and Nassib, but neither has had the impact that Gruden and Mayock had hoped for.