Photo by Kirby Lee—USA TODAY Sports
Jon Gruden is expected to be announced as the next head coach of the Oakland Raiders in a press conference on Tuesday, according to ESPN. That writing had been on the wall since before the season ended; the really crazy line-item behind the signing of the presumably former ESPN analyst and former Raiders coach is the price tag and contract duration. Adam Schefter is reporting that Gruden is expected to ink a 10-year deal worth upwards of $100 million, and Ian Rapoport says it could be in excess of $100 million. Whatever the final numbers, he'll be in a good place to spend it as he helps the Raiders transition into their new home in Las Vegas in either 2019 or 2020.
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Gruden will return to the Raiders after coaching the team from 1998-2001, replacing Jack Del Rio, who was fired on Sunday. The Raiders followed up an outstanding 12-4 2016 season with a promising two-win start in 2017. But then the team soon regressed and finished 2017 with a 6-10 record, topped off by a 30-10 loss to the LA Chargers, after which Del Rio announced himself that he had been fired.If you are wondering whether the Raiders satisfied the Rooney Rule, the NFL says Oakland interviewed two minority candidates for the job before hiring Gruden.