National Football League

Former Raider Bucky Brooks: Team must return to Al Davis' vision of excellence

Updated Oct. 14, 2021 3:00 p.m. ET

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By Bucky Brooks
FOX Sports NFL Analyst

Commitment to excellence.

The famous slogan, crafted by the late Al Davis, boldly describes the standard by which every member of the Raiders’ organization is expected to perform.

While every organization has catchphrases and hashtags that represent the core values of the franchise, the slogan hits differently within the Raiders.

Mr. Davis breathed life into those words with actions that made the organization the premier franchise in football. The Raiders were the only team to play in the Super Bowl in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, and they were among the winningest teams in professional sports from 1963 to 2002, with just seven losing seasons in that span.

As a pioneer, Davis was the first NFL owner to hire a Latino coach when he named Tom Flores, the son of Mexican immigrants, the head coach in 1979. The ground-breaking hire led the Raiders to victories in Super Bowl XV and XVIII. 

In 1989, Davis made Art Shell the first Black head coach in the modern era of the NFL.

Raiders owner Al Davis championed diversity by putting minority candidates and women in positions of power within the organization. (Photo by Sylvia Allen/Getty Images)

With former team intern Amy Trask hired as a front-office executive in 1987, the Raiders were one of the first organizations to have a woman in a prominent football role. A decade later, Trask was appointed the team's CEO and held that position until 2013.

The history of the organization matches the slogan, and that is why Jon Gruden could no longer serve as the face of the franchise. Despite his Super Bowl pedigree and standing as the second-winningest coach in Raiders history, Gruden's racist, misogynistic and anti-gay emails made him ill-equipped to continue in a leadership role for a franchise that represents what the league should envision for its future.

As a kid, I was drawn to the Silver and Black. The Raiders not only had cool colors and an iconic logo, but also they were a collection of outcasts and misfits who won as a team despite their individual differences. Their diversity was their strength, and watching a team that celebrated diversity, equality and inclusion appealed to the 12-year-old who imitated Marcus Allen’s spectacular, 74-yard touchdown run in Super Bowl XVIII every weekend in the backyard.

My affinity for the Raiders grew even more when I had a chance to play for the team at the end of my NFL career. I joined the Raiders in 1998 as a free-agent defensive back during Gruden’s first season after a spate of injuries in the secondary created an opportunity.

From Day 1, I felt the energy and expectations of a franchise led by a visionary owner with maverick traits. Davis' team was a hodgepodge of players with different personalities, backgrounds and skills. From former Heisman Trophy winners to failed No. 1 overall picks to track-stars-turned-football players, the locker room was a melting pot of players linked by a common goal of competing for a championship.

Although I had been on teams with similar makeup, the Raiders had a different feel due to Davis’ hands-on management style and swagger. He walked around with a self-assuredness that was bolstered by his success transforming a team of cast-offs into Super Bowl champions.

Tom Flores led the Raiders to two championships, including a 38-9 victory over Washington in Super Bowl XVIII on Jan. 22, 1984. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images)

Hired to his first NFL head-coaching job and his first of two stints with the Raiders in 1998, Gruden turned up the team’s bravado with his energetic approach. He possessed just enough cockiness to earn him "cool" coach status in the locker room. 

As a 30-something rocking out to loud music prior to games, Gruden appeared to relate to players better than his peers. He would deliver epic speeches in team meetings that would captivate and inspire the squad.

Little did I know that he was merely an orator, rather than a true communicator. Sure, Gruden’s talks were poignant and insightful, but behind closed doors, did he really mean what he told us?

Great coaches earn the trust of their players through transparent communication. They share their vulnerabilities with the team, and their players respond by setting aside their personal agendas for the sake of the whole. That sacrifice comes from a belief that the head coach will always do what is best for the team, and everyone will benefit from the team’s success.

That’s why Gruden’s egregious emails made it impossible for the Raiders to keep him. How can a team rally behind a leader who does not love everyone in the locker room? Moreover, how can the team embrace his values when he does not value his players’ ideals?  

As a leader, Gruden should want to help his players become the best versions of themselves on and off the field. If players are able to maximize their full potential, they will help the team improve by leaps and bounds.

Mr. Davis helped so many realize their dreams. He loved putting former players, particularly former Raiders, in prominent roles as coaches and scouts. By granting former players opportunities in leadership positions, he added diverse perspectives to the coaching and personnel staff that resulted in better connectivity between the team and front office.

If Gruden had been paying attention to the work of his boss, he might have gained a better appreciation of the benefits of a diverse workplace. Better yet, he would have viewed the kaleidoscope of people on the field and sidelines as a positive development that helped him transform a struggling franchise into a Super Bowl contender.

Art Shell had a 54-38 record with the Raiders and in 1990 became the first Black coach to lead a team to the conference championship game. (Photo by Robert B. Stanton/NFLPhotoLibrary)

Perhaps Gruden thought he was solely responsible for the rise of the Silver and Black and opted to ignore the messages splattered on the walls of the team’s facility. The pride and poise exemplified by Raider Nation cross races, creeds and genders. And the supporters in the "Black Hole" who raised "Chucky" dolls in his honor also represent a collection of people who can relate to the outcasts and mavericks Davis embraced as he transformed the Raiders into champions.

With Gruden out, the Raiders are moving forward with Rich Bisaccia as the interim coach. Defensive coordinator Gus Bradley, who was head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars from 2013 to 2016, was reportedly also a possibility. But Bisaccia, a longtime special-teams coordinator, has been endorsed as a head-coaching candidate for years, particularly by Las Vegas general manager Mike Mayock during his time as a broadcaster with NFL Network. 

As the only coach on the staff who has worked with both offensive and defensive players, Bisaccia certainly knows the Raiders' personnel. Plus, he brings superb teaching and player-development expertise to the job.

Mayock and Bisaccia have a strong relationship, which should help the Raiders navigate through this storm. Bisaccia must repair the trust and rebuild the bond between coaches and players — while mapping out a plan to help Las Vegas challenge for a playoff spot. To start, he has to get the team back on track after consecutive losses wiped away the momentum of a 3-0 start.

In 2019, former Raiders star Charles Woodson lit the Al Davis Commitment to Excellence torch in Oakland. (Photo by Jason O. Watson/Getty Images)

Mayock will certainly assist in the transition by taking on more roster management responsibilities. Most importantly, the GM must work with Bisaccia to create a long-term vision for the team that focuses on transparent communication and inclusion. 

The Raiders have been rocked by a scandal that led to the resignation of a popular coach, but the team’s "Commitment to Excellence" remains intact.

If the new leadership embraces the values that have long been part of the franchise’s history, the Raiders will withstand the damage created by their small-minded former coach. 

Bucky Brooks is an NFL analyst for FOX Sports and regularly appears on "Speak For Yourself." He also breaks down the game for NFL Network and is a cohost of the "Moving the Sticks" podcast.

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