The Oakland Raiders took different measures this offseason in order to improve exponentially. They added an electrifying duo of wide receivers, drafted rookies with lots of upside and patched their linebacker corps. There is one thing they didn’t do though…
The Raiders didn’t fire offensive line coordinator Tom Cable, the weakest link in their staff. In 2018, Oakland drafted linemen Kolton Miller and Brandon Parker in the first and third round respectively and even then, the offensive line ranked 26th in pass blocking efficiency in the league last year. If talent wasn’t the problem, there’s only one direction to point out for the line’s lack of product and that is Cable.
Head coach Jon Gruden hired Tom Cable to the Raiders after a subpar tenure with the Seahawks. He was brought in improve a line that was among the best in 2017 but instead ended up performing worse in 2018. Cable’s track record in Seattle should have given everyone an indication of things to come.
As Doug Farrar of Touchdown Wire pointed out, Cable has never developed an elite offensive line. Never. Why he got a job on the Raiders staff based on his track record is beyond me. What matters is that the offense line performed poorly and other than center Rodney Hudson and maybe left tackle Trent Brown, there is more potential than steady contributors on the roster at this point.
Miller, Parker and rookie Lester Cotton have the physical tools to turn into solid players in the offensive line, but without adequate coaching, it’s uncertain if they’re going to be able to reach their niche.
The Raiders could have gone in different directions to upgrade their offensive line staff. They didn’t and will trust their current personnel to deliver. If they don’t produce, Oakland will have to make the one move they should have done this past offseason.
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