And the similarities between the Raiders and the Redskins continue.
The Redskins interviewed at least one head-coaching candidate before firing Jim Zorn. The Raiders, according to David White of the San Francisco Chronicle, have interviewed at least two, even though they already have a head coach.
The candidates for the vacancy that doesn’t yet exist are former Giants coach and current Las Vegas Locos (UFL) coach Jim Fassel and former Raiders offensive coordinator Marc Trestman, a long-time NFL assistant coach who currently runs the Montreal Alouettes of the CFL.
Per White, the Raiders might interview Giants offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride and/or Packers assistant head coach/inside linebackers Winston Moss. It’s possible that one or both men already have been interviewed; both were considered for the job last season, before it went to Tom Cable.
An interview of Moss would satisfy the league’s Rooney Rule, which requires at least one minority candidate to be considered for each head-coaching vacancy.
Other potential candidates, as we’ve heard it, include Stanford coach Jim Harbaugh and former Texas Tech coach Mike Leach.
So it appears that owner Al Davis plans to size up his alternatives before deciding whether to pull the plug on Cable. And Davis apparently has more options than most thought would be interested in the job.
As Buffalo G.M. Buddy Nix said Tuesday while introducing new Bills coach Chan Gailey (via ESPN), “Don’t ever think you can’t fill coaching jobs, even if they’re bad. Oakland gets a lot of call.”
Nix then added, “Don’t say I said that. I wish I hadn’t.”
It would have been better if he’d simply closed with, “Boom. Roasted.”