After several days of uncertainty regarding when -- or if -- Raiders owner Al Davis would be meeting with twisting-in-the-wind head coach Tom Cable, Jerry McDonald of the Contra Costa Times reports that the two men will meet imminently.
“They expect to meet today and possibly tomorrow,” Raiders senior executive John Herrera told McDonald.
Our friends at KNBR reported earlier in the day that Davis will be prepared to fire Cable unless Cable demonstrates that he can and will work with quarterback JaMarcus Russell.
It remains to be seen whether Cable genuinely is able to commit to the No. 1 pick in the 2007 draft, especially since Cable suggested last month that quarterback play kept the team from contending in 2009.
Regardless of whether Cable will say what he needs to say in order to stay employed, Davis and company should make no final decisions on Cable without having a pretty good idea as to the quality of the replacement that would be available. Most coaches who have options won’t want to take the job, so in the end the best move for the Raiders might be to love the one they’re with.
Cable, too, would be wise to engage in a similar analysis before deciding whether to kiss the ring or to invite the powers-that-be to kiss something else.