A Few weeks ago, Dennis Allen’s job was pretty secure. He had this team winning and competing. Even after a few skids, Mark Davis admitted he was patient with the rebuild process, however, he also said he wanted progress. Dennis Allen himself has said that he is focused on wins and not the future. Unfortunately he hasn’t got many wins with an 8-22 record, and his future is indoubt. Fans have been asking for his job. SI’s Jim Trotter wrote that Dennis Allen getting fired is laughable. He cites all of the adversity he and McKenzie have dealt. He says that the team frankly doesn’t have the talent or the depth to compete over the long haul. Trotter said all of the bargain bin free agents signed last season are pushing their bodies farther than they ever have, as guys who were role players are now starters.
I’ll admit, Dennis Allen has done a lot with a little. He’s had veterans like Charles Woodson buy into his scheme and program. Hes made the best of all the injuries, lack of depth, and lack of talent. I think there are times where he should have made adjustments, such as the Washington, Dallas, and KC game, but you could say that with any coach. In Reality, I don’t think Dennis Allen, Reggie Mckenzie, or Mark Davis know whether Allen will be coaching this team another season.
Allen’s Future Comes Down To…
The Undrafted Rookie Quarterback Matt McGloin. Dennis Allen has hung his hat playing the undrafted QB. Even after a terrible game in Kansas City were McGloin showed he can turn the ball over just as well as Terrelle Pryor, Allen has kept McGloin the starter.
Terrelle Pryor put it into prospective last week, when he said he didn’t feel like he lost his job to McGloin. The truth is, it was never Pryor’s job to begin with. When Dennis Allen first came to Oakland, Pryor was the third string QB, but moved up the depth chart by the end of the season. This offseason, the Raiders brought in Matt Flynn, and said it was his job to lose. Pryor came in, played explosive, and took Flynn’s job. Flynn’s struggles, a bad offensiveline, and a lack of playmakers on offense made Allen play Pryor. Allen even named him the starter, and alluded to his possiblity as the future.
Pryor’s struggles, combined with injury, and a mishandling of them both, gave Allen a reason not to play Pryor. Since Pryor has said all the right things and helped Matt McGloin, but still isn’t playing. McGloin is 1-5 as a starter, and has thrown almost as many ints as TDS. He has more yards than Pryor, and the recievers play better with McGloin but thats largely due to some garbage time (IE KC Game). Offensive coordinator Greg Olsen has said the Raiders are trying to play Pryor to borrow some of his explosiveness. How is he suppossed to be explosive in 3 plays or one series? He isn’t michael Jordan. That seems to me like a play to appease ownership and fans.
But I get why Allen doesn’t want to go back to Pryor. If he plays well, then his judgement will be questioned going forward. If he plays bad then they will question why he made the shift and it will only hurt Pryor’s stock going forward. Hence, Dennis Allen has made his bed with Matt McGloin, and now its time for him to lye in it. Maybe not playing Pryor will increase the Raiders tanking in hopes of netting a new franchise quarterback. Maybe that was the plan all along, by playing McGloin the Raiders hoped to salvage another playoff-less season. Only problem with that is Allen may not be here next season to coach said rookie QB.
The Raiders have 2 more games left. Those two games are against bitter rivals and potential playoff terams. These are Allen’s last two chances to prove he can coach at this level. I’m sure he does have the leadership qualities people talk about. I’m sure he is a bright defensive mind. However, those two things dont always equal success. Winning equals success and Allen hasn’t done enough of that. Everyone knows the circumstances he has faced, but he knew what he was signing up for. These last two games are his chance to show he can get this team playing inspired and competitve ball two more times. If he can do that, and get atleast one more win, well that will be some progress for the season. Either way, Allen’s success is gonna come down to how well Matt McGloin plays. Ifthe undrafted rookie is able to pull a win off, if the beat up defense can rally, and if the team can play inspired and disciplene ball; then Allen will retain his job. That is a lot of ifs, and allen only has two more opportunities guaranteed to answer those questions.
