Raiders to be investigated
League concerned team might have violated ‘Rooney Rule’ during coach search
ALAMEDA, Calif. — The NFL said Thursday it will investigate whether the Oakland Raiders violated the “Rooney Rule” when they hired Jon Gruden as coach.
The Fritz Pollard Alliance called for the investigation on Wednesday out of concern that Raiders owner Mark Davis came to an agreement with Gruden before the team interviewed any minority candidates as required by the NFL since 2003.
NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said in a statement that the NFL will “look into this.”
The Fritz Pollard Alliance is dedicated to promoting diversity and equality of job opportunity in the coaching, front office and scouting staffs of NFL teams.
Raiders general manager Reggie McKenzie said Tuesday he interviewed two minority candidates before Gruden’s hiring was announced. Those candidates were Oakland tight ends coach Bobby Johnson and Southern California offensive coordinator Tee Martin, a former New Mexico assistant.
The Raiders haven’t commented on the request from the Fritz Pollard Alliance.
Davis said Tuesday at the news conference introducing Gruden as the team’s new coach that he had been trying to make the move for six years and finally believed it would happen after a meeting in Philadelphia on Christmas Eve, the day before Gruden worked a game between the Raiders and Eagles on ESPN.
“I felt pretty confident that he was all-in,” Davis said. “And that’s the term that we were using in our discussions and everything, are you all-in? And I never wavered from all-in. And this time he didn’t waver, either.”
PANTHERS: Norv Turner, 65, will be hired as offensive coordinator, a source told the Charlotte Observer on Thursday evening. Turner’s son Scott will also be hired as the team’s quarterbacks coach.
On Monday, the Panthers announced that they had fired offensive coordinator Mike Shula and quarterbacks coach Ken Dorsey, both of whom had been in their respective positions since 2013.
FALCONS: During the week, receiver Julio Jones, who has dealt with injuries to his ribs, thumb, knee, hip, back and ankle this season, is often limited in practice or doesn’t even take the field. But by the time the game rolls around, he’s always ready to go.
That will be the case again for Saturday’s NFC divisional playoff game against top-seeded Philadelphia.
After sitting out two days of practice with a sore ankle and going through a limited routine Thursday at the final full workout before the game, Jones will be in the starting lineup for the 18th consecutive time this season.
“The thing with being injured, it’s really just blocking it out,” Jones said. “Don’t use it as an excuse.”
LAS VEGAS: The decline in tourists that Las Vegas, Nev., experienced after the mass shooting three months ago affected the tax collections meant to pay for a portion of the new Raiders stadium in Sin City.
Figures released Thursday by the Las Vegas Stadium Authority show tax collections came in about 3 percent and 10 percent under projections in October and November, respectively.
An increase on area hotel taxes went into effect in March to cover $750 million of the $1.9 billion project.
Tourists are paying about $1.50 more per night on their hotel bill for an average-priced room on the Las Vegas Strip. The data show taxpayers contributed to the project $4.6 million in October and $3.4 million in November.
The Raiders want to kick off the 2020 season in Las Vegas.
GIANTS: New York’s next coach will be busy this weekend.
The Giants themselves will be watching and waiting.
According to a source, New York has whittled its list of candidates from six to three after meetings Thursday. All three of the remaining candidates are part of coaching staffs that are participating in playoff games this weekend: Vikings offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur, Patriots defensive coordinator Matt Patricia and Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels.
The three have yet to meet with co-owner Steve Tisch, who was out of the country during their initial interviews last week.
The three who interviewed for the job who no longer are considered candidates are Giants defensive coordinator and interim head coach Steve Spagnuolo, Panthers defensive coordinator Steve Wilks and ex-Broncos associate head coach Eric Studesville..
JETS: New York general manager Mike Maccagnan said his front office will be active in free agency come March. And when that time comes, multiple sources told Newsday the Jets will look at upcoming free-agent quarterback Kirk Cousins.
A source said the Jets haven’t made final determinations on which free agents they will seek out as Maccagnan and the personnel staff continue to meet.