Raiders GM McKenzie wants his 'own guy'

ALAMEDA, CA - Reggie McKenzie arrived as the Raiders' general manager preaching stability, and his first official act was to dismiss the head coach - meaning the most unstable of franchises will have its sixth head coach since 2003. '

Hue Jackson is out, and McKenzie said the search for a successor will begin immediately.

Owner Mark Davis hired McKenzie to run the football operation, giving him full authority to hire and fire the head coach.

"The decision centered on me wanting my own guy," McKenzie said. "If Hue would have finished 7-0 down the stretch, and they made the playoffs, that would have played a role. But you look into every dynamic. I want to bring my own guy in, and Mark was OK with that. Period. That's what we want."

McKenzie will attempt to bring structure to an organization that needs it.

On more than one occasion, Al Davis said he didn't feel the need for a chain of command. All decisions were made by him and information was funneled to him from the head coach and people in the personnel department. He sought opinions, then made choices based on the information he had.

Davis had final approval on all assistant coaches, hiring some himself, and rejecting others wanted by the head coach.

In terms of defensive football, Davis dictated the scheme, insisted on playing predominantly man-to-man defense and coordinators were expected to play within a framework.

In the McKenzie regime, there will be a clear division of responsibilities and a chain of command.

McKenzie will handle all talent evaluation and acquisition, from the draft to free agency. He will take input from the head coach, but all the talent coming through the doors at the facility will be at his discretion.

The head coach will be responsible for installing systems of football and hiring his staff. He will run practices his way, coach the team his way, without interference from the front office.

"I'm not going to have any say-so," McKenzie said. "What I'm going to do is empower the head coach to hire his staff, the best possible staff he can hire. We're not going to tie the guy's hands and tell him to hire this guy or that guy. It wouldn't be fair to the head coach. The head coach will have the right to hire any coach that he wants."

A member of the Green Bay Packers organization since 1994, McKenzie will import much of what he learned under executives such as Ron Wolf and Ted Thompson.

He will aim to have the same relationship with his new coach as Wolf had with Mike Holmgren and Thompson has with Mike McCarthy, he said.

"I've seen how that works. I think when you have a great relationship from the top, it filters down," McKenzie said. "The Packer organization is done right, and that's why I'm going to make sure our chain of command is done that way."

Davis doesn't plan on attempting to run the team as his father did, saying, "I know what I don't know.

"I would say I'm an observer," Davis said. "I like to observe how things are going and then actually act on those things I see. I've got patience."

Not long after being fired, Jackson said he believed his exit was of Davis' doing, claiming the new owner "wanted to put his stamp on things."

Davis, however, said the call belonged to McKenzie.

"(Hue) did some things great, but we ended up 8-8, didn't make the playoffs," Davis said. "Injuries were a key part of that. I have a lot of respect for Hue Jackson. Reggie said it is time to move forward. That's what we're going to do."

USA Today