A last-minute attempt to sway Raiders defensive coordinator Patrick Graham away from Las Vegas.
There’s a reason why I include phrases like “working on a deal,” “finalizing a deal,” or “agreed to a deal,” a lot of times when breaking NFL transactional news, per the following tweet alert posted Wednesday evening:
“Breaking: I’m told the #Raiders and Patrick Graham are working on a deal to bring him back as defensive coordinator, per league source,” to indicate negotiations were in process and intentions to finalize a contract.
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Specific verbiage can help indicate the stage of a story or transaction, the degree of urgency, protects sourcing; or just bluntly serve as a reminder that change can happen or be attempted.
To that end, interestingly Thursday morning I heard from additional league sources telling me that Graham actually continued to be in demand through the negotiations of his deal to return to Las Vegas —as Jacksonville still attempted to insert last minute persuasions to make him a Jaguar.
Problem is the last-minute effort was evidently too late—coming several days after Graham’s last interviews with the Jaguars and the announcement of Liam Coen as head coach. My understanding is that Graham was not going back on his word to Las Vegas despite some late night attempts, per sources.
The Pace Of Coaching Carousel Season
In the 2007 movie ’Shooter’ Mark Wahlberg once said, “Slow is smooth, smooth is fast.”
But sometimes smooth can be too slow.
While the above scenario is fairly common in the NFL, the result of missing can be very impactful. The Carousel season is not only about getting the right head coach, the best available coordinators and support staff, but there’s also a race element to it.
While the Raiders ranked 25th overall in scoring defense in 2024, the unit did improve to 6th— allowing just 18.3ppg from weeks 15 through 18 as Graham’s unit helped to steady a rocky season despite questions at quarterback, the departure of Davante Adams and the overall transition under another new head coach in Antonio Pierce.
Overall, for the Raiders, there was value in bringing Graham back for the sake of consistency and stability—something starting edge Maxx Crosby openly campaigned for.
The Impact Of Missing Out
On the flip side, there’s a loss of benefits for the Jaguars in losing out on Graham, not just from having a veteran coordinator steadying the other side of the ball, but more importantly in taking tremendous weight off of Coen’s shoulders as a rookie head coach.
The Jaguars know they desperately need help to improve a defense ranking bottom tier in many notable categories including YPGA (31) and PTsA (27) by the end of the regular season, a season after firing many defensive coaches.
What will the impact be on missing out on a desired coordinator target for the 2025 season?
Will it be visible? Will it be measurable?
This is why timing matters; and therein lies the rub—-especially while club’s or decision-makers also need time to be thorough.
This brings into view the art of the search during Carousel season and the strategic timing of staff changes.
When do you make them?
Looking Back At The NY Jets 2024 Season
In hindsight, Jets owner Woody Johnson’s risk of firing head coach Robert Saleh five games into the season looks like it was way too early; yet the club had one of the deeper coaching searches of all teams with vacancies and still came out with one of their top targets in Aaron Glenn. Now you can tell the Jets, Bears and Lions are battling it out over hiring and retaining some staff members on Detroit’s roster while the clock continues to tick.
Moreover, Saleh was coveted as a defensive coordinator…
Steve Wilks was coveted..
You get my drift…quality coaches will not be on the bench long.
There are coordinators that are also head coach material, or are just quality coaches period who offer more headspace to a head coach to delegate and less concerns; not to mention they come with the added bonus of providing guidance and being a good sounding board.
Meanwhile, too much time can pass by whether it’s the club’s fault, or not.
What’s Next And Who’s Left?
The New Orleans Saints will end up with a very talented and smart head coach prospect, but being the last team in the sandbox has certainly reduced their options.
So, as Coen is finding out, the delay in electing and being named head coach can put you behind your skies and possibly impact the trajectory of a season.
From a club perspective, indecision on whether or not to mutually part ways with personnel staff can literally hinder your process, your incoming staff and potentially leave an unforgettable mark.
Point is: you never want delays or indecision to impact fate.
Hopefully for the Jaguars, theirs will be more positive.
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