鈥?If Jon Gruden does leave the comforts of the broadcast booth for a second stint as coach of the Oakland Raiders Jim Kelly Jersey , he wouldn’t be the first coach lured back to the sidelines after a long hiatus from the profession.Several other coaches have attempted the move, with the most successful being Dick Vermeil, who spent 14 years broadcasting between his burnout and second act that began in St. Louis and led to a Super Bowl title for the Rams.Others had more problems in their return, most notably Art Shell. The Hall of Fame offensive lineman was fired by the Raiders following the 1994 season despite a 54-38 record and three playoff berths in his five full seasons. More than a decade later, Shell’s second stint with the franchise lasted one year and led to just two wins.Gruden could be the latest coach to follow this path. He was fired by Tampa Bay following the 2008 season and has spent the past nine years as an announcer at ESPN. The Raiders fired Jack Del Rio following a disappointing six-win season and appear set on bringing back Gruden.He has said he believes there’s a “good chance” he will get the job in Oakland after interviewing with owner Mark Davis.Here is a look at several coaches who took at least a four-year break before returning as head coaches:PAUL BROWN: Brown was the founder and original coach of the Cleveland Browns and led the franchise to 10 straight title games in the All-America Football Conference and NFL, including three NFL titles. Brown was fired by owner Art Modell following the 1962 season. After a brief hiatus, Brown returned to football as the part owner, coach and general manager of the AFL expansion Cincinnati Bengals, who began play in 1968. Brown coached the Bengals for eight seasons, made the postseason three times but never won another playoff game a coach.DICK VERMEIL: Vermeil had a successful seven-year run as coach of Philadelphia from 1976-82, taking the Eagles to their first Super Bowl following the 1980 season. But Vermeil burned out of coaching and stepped away after the 1982 season. Vermeil then launched a successful broadcast career before finally going back to the sidelines in 1997 with the Rams. St. Louis won just nine games his first two years before breaking through with the Super Bowl title in the 1999 season behind quarterback Kurt Warner. Vermeil retired again after that title only to return to coaching in 2001 with Kansas City. He posted a 44-36 record in five seasons with the Chiefs.TOM FLORES: Flores was replaced as Raiders coach following the 1987 season after winning two Super Bowls in his nine seasons with the franchise. He took over as general manager in Seattle in 1989 before going back to coaching with the Seahawks in 1992. He went just 14-34 in three seasons.JOE GIBBS: Gibbs won three Super Bowl titles with three separate quarterbacks during a 12-year run in Washington. He shocked the team when he retired two months after the end of the 1992 season and spent the ensuing years as an announcer and a NASCAR team owner. Gibbs returned to coaching in 2004 and his second stint in Washington wasn’t nearly as effective as his first. The team went 30-34 in his four seasons, making the playoffs twice and winning one game before retiring again.MIKE DITKA: Iron Mike Ditka had one of the most successful coaching tenures ever in Chicago, winning 106 regular-season games for the most in franchise history besides George Halas. Ditka became legendary in the city thanks to leading the Bears to their only Super Bowl title following the 1985 season Nick Chubb Jersey , but he was fired after going 5-11 in 1992. After a four-year break, Ditka was hired to coach the New Orleans Saints in 1997. He won just 15 games in three years and his most notable move during that time was trading his entire stash of 1999 draft picks and a 2000 first-rounder for the rights to draft running back Ricky Williams.ART SHELL: Shell was let go by the Raiders following the 1994 season as late owner Al Davis wanted a fresh start for the team for its move back to Oakland. Davis later said he regretted the move and brought Shell back in 2006. Shell had spent his first six years away from the Raiders as an assistant coach but had been out of the profession entirely for five seasons when Davis hired him a second time. The tenure was a disaster from the start as players didn’t respond to Shell and his systems were outdated. Oakland went 2-14 in his one season before Davis fired him a second time. Los Angeles Rams general manager Les Snead has to put together a complicated puzzle this offseason.
And he still isn’t sure whether All-Pro defensive tackle Aaron Donald’s contract extension will be the first or last piece to fall into place for the surprising NFC West champions.
Negotiating with Donald is the highest-profile task awaiting Snead, who will also have to address uncertainty in the secondary, if he will use the franchise tag on wide receiver Sammy Watkins, and whether to cut players such as linebacker Mark Barron and wide receiver Tavon Austin.
”That’s the biggest piece of the puzzle is, all right, how do we stay in this window where we expect to compete for a division, expect to win the division. And we do have a young team so it is sustainable, but it’s solving that riddle,” Snead said Wednesday.
The Rams spent much of their efforts last offseason trying to address their struggling offense, hiring Sean McVay as head coach and bringing in established veterans including left tackle Andrew Whitworth, center John Sullivan and wide receivers Robert Woods and Watkins to assist quarterback Jared Goff.
Those efforts were more successful than Snead could have imagined, finishing as the top scoring offense in the league this season after ranking last the previous season.
Los Angeles went 11-5 Authentic Vontaze Burfict Jersey , with the franchise earning its first division title since 2003, before losing to the Atlanta Falcons 26-13 in the first round of the playoffs on Saturday.
Snead said the emphasis in the upcoming months will now be on defense, including trying to finalize a new contract with Donald. Donald held out of training camp in hopes of getting that deal and didn’t report to the team until one day before the regular season started.
Still, he finished with 15 tackles for loss and 11 sacks in 14 games, solidifying his status as the game’s dominant interior lineman.
Snead and Donald’s representatives both agreed to stop negotiating during the season. There is no timetable for an agreement, but even a basic framework of what will likely be the richest contract for a defender in NFL history would give Snead the ability to respond accordingly in other areas.
”Like I’ve always said with Aaron, hey, we want him to be a Ram a long time,” Snead said. ”So when we ink that deal, or not, I can’t put a timeline on it, but it is a major priority, as it always will be until we get it done. And for Aaron’s sake Lamar Jackson Youth Jersey , and for doing business, with our other players as well because that contract obviously will affect basically your salary cap.”
While Donald will almost certainly remain the anchor up front for a long time, there are fewer guarantees at defensive back. Cornerback Trumaine Johnson has played the past two seasons under the franchise tag, and starting safety Lamarcus Joyner and slot corner Nickell Robey-Coleman are unrestricted free agents.
Cornerback Kayvon Webster, one of the few significant signings on defense last offseason, is recovering from a torn Achilles tendon.
Snead held off on committing to Johnson on a long-term basis before seeing how he would fit in defensive coordinator Wade Phillips’ system.
Snead said making sure a player can thrive in a specific scheme is a must before committing big money. Johnson played well with 57 solo tackles, 14 passes defended and two interceptions.
”They definitely have to be ideal scheme fits, or I always call it you’re putting a rectangle in a square and I think that’s how things get a little off-kilter when you’re building a team,” Snead said.
There could also be turnover at linebacker, where Barron and edge rusher Robert Quinn could be cut to avoid significant salary-cap hits.
The same might be true for Austin, who had 13 receptions for 47 yards and ran for 270 yards and one touchdown. Austin fell behind Woods, Watkins and rookie Cooper Kupp in the rotation after being limited by a hamstring injury in training camp.
If the 2013 first-round pick were to go, it could increase the likelihood Watkins remains with Los Angeles.
Watkins led the Rams with eight touchdown receptions in the final season of his rookie contract after being acquired in a trade from Buffalo in August.
Watkins could be one of the top options in a relatively weak group of free-agent receivers Isaiah Oliver Falcons Jersey , making him a potential option for the franchise tag.
”The goal is to make sure we can fit everybody into the budget,” Snead said. ”Because sometimes saving money, that kind of means we’re attacking an individual player just to save money.
”But it’s really looking at the budget, the cap situation for this year, and the cap situation for next year, and the next. Then we go `18, how do we improve and then keep the core together? So, it’s not necessarily looking at just salaries.”
NOTES: Defensive tackle Michael Brockers is not expected to require surgery for the knee injury he sustained against the Falcons, Snead said.
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