By Unless you’re Patrick Star (and literally live under a rock), you’ve probably heard about Jon Gruden’s resignation this past week. Furthermore, you are likely aware of the reasons why his resignation was necessary. Many others have already covered this story in great detail–what’s more, there are more important voices than mine that deserve to be heard regarding this topic. Therefore, I will not throw my hat into the ring here. Instead, I would like to analyze the Raider’s situation moving forward. Specifically, I’d like to focus on what the Raiders can do to avoid making a similar mistake-of-character in future head coach hirings.
I feel to find the answer to this problem, the Raiders need not look any further than their own locker room–that is, to the leadership qualities exhibited by Derek Carr. Now, in saying this, I am also aware of the fact that Gruden may not have been hired in good faith. If we’ve learned anything over recent years (and days) about NFL owners, it’s that they often possess the same narcissistic, self-serving, and myopic character traits that other extremely wealthy and powerful individuals possess in different industries. Like Ryan Clark has pointed out, Gruden had to be sending these emails to someone whom he was confident would share his sentiments (or at least not see a glaring problem with them).
Consequently, I am aware of the fact that what I am about to say about leadership, respect, and understanding, may be rendered frivolous by the current cultic and ultimately homogenous state of NFL ownership. Nonetheless, if the Raiders actually want to win football games, I feel they have the answer to their problems (or at least the start of an answer), already in-house.
Derek Carr the Leader
Some may have justifiable criticism for Derek Carr’s performance on the field; however, he is rarely criticized on the basis of his character or his ability as a leader–and for good reason. In seven full seasons in the NFL, Carr has been nothing short of a true professional. He praises teammates when praise is due, and, even during tough times, he speaks with optimism and puts an emphasis on progress, not negative rumination.
What’s more, it seems his answers to questions often go beyond the “cookie-cutter” platitudes that are so often uttered by those who know it is their responsibility to say “the right thing”. Rather, one can hear the thoughtfulness in Carr’s words and one can tell that Carr’s responses are genuine and honest. For example, when asked for his thoughts on Jon Gruden in the wake of this scandal, Carr responded, “I love the man, but hate the sin.” There isn’t a much more mature answer that could be given by a starting quarterback who has spent four years building a relationship with his head coach. This shows self awareness and an ability to think reasonably about how to square the gravity of the situation as it extends beyond the Raiders with his own emotions.
Carr’s professionalism exists in the face of considerable adversity outside of the past week’s events as well. Carr has now played for four different head coaches (soon to be five), three different offensive coordinators, and has had to navigate a move from Oakland to Las Vegas in 2020.
In this time, Carr has still put together a relatively successful career. He has completed over 60% of his passes, thrown for over 25,000 yards, and has a 1.9% interception rate on 178 total touchdowns. Carr was even in MVP talks during the 2016 season when the Raiders went 12-4. The Raiders looked to have something cooking this season, and the Jon Gruden experiment seemed to be finally coming together. Consequently, this scandal could prove tumultuous for the Raider’s season, especially in an incredibly competitive AFC West division.
Derek Carr the Example
Once again, Carr will have to work through adversity to lead his team to success. There is no reason to think that, no matter the outcome of the season, Carr will not lead with poise and class. Just as he’s always done, Carr will continue to be the unmoved stone in stormy waters. This is exactly the type of character the Raiders ought to pursue in their inevitable search for a new head coach. A leader with perspective, poise, emotional intelligence, and the self-awareness to know that he does not know everything.
There are undoubtedly other players on the current Raiders squad that represent examples of leadership that are on par with Derek Carr. That said, Carr currently finds himself in a leadership position as the franchise quarterback and thus, he has already had to deal with high pressure situations wherein the spotlight has been firmly rested on his shoulders.
And how has he handled this? In a winning way. By not merely saying the right things when the cameras are on, but acting in accordance with those words. Jon Gruden proved dishonest, emotionally unkept, and intellectually lazy over the past week– and these are all traits that are not conducive to longterm success as a head coach in the NFL. I don’t mean to undermine Gruden’s football-related success over the years, but there are valid arguments to be made that Gruden’s football career is not as illustrious as his 100 million dollar contract would seem to indicate.
And now, with Gruden’s chickens finally coming home to roost, the Raiders would be smart to make their next head coaching decision not by picking the shiniest car on the lot, but by referring back to the leadership model exemplified by Derek Carr. I can already say with some confidence that the Raiders do not deserve Carr; but if ownership mishandles the next coaching decision when they have a perfect model of leadership already in the building, this will become an absolute certainty.
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