Report: Players angry with Gruden over trades
The Raiders’ latest move to send away a marquee name has left several players upset with coach Jon Gruden and uncertain about the team’s future, according to a report from The Athletic.
The website reported multiple players were questioning Gruden’s ‘‘accountability’’ in the wake of the trade Monday that sent receiver Amari Cooper to the Cowboys for a first-round draft pick in 2019.
‘‘I think many of us realize we won’t be here next year,’’ one player told The Athletic. ‘‘We are just waiting to see if we will be here next week.’’
Gruden stood by the move Wednesday.
‘‘We’re doing everything we can to win games and certainly build this football team,’’ Gruden said. ‘‘Not everybody, I’m sure, understands what’s going on, but I just want to say those two things. We’re doing everything we can for the Raiders — for the team today and for the team of the future. And sometimes it’s a tough job.’’
Gruden never publicly said the Raiders wouldn’t trade Cooper. But when he was asked Sunday about trade rumors, he responded by saying Cooper would ‘‘be a big part of our pass offense.’’
The trade of Cooper followed a deal Sept. 2 that sent linebacker Khalil Mack, one of the top defenders in the league, to the Bears for first-round draft picks in 2019 and 2020, a third-rounder in 2020 and a sixth-rounder in 2019. The Raiders also sent the Bears a second-round pick in 2020.
‘‘The Mack trade was a real stiff jab,’’ another player said. ‘‘But the Cooper one was like a knockout punch, especially because we had just walked back in the door from the bye. We didn’t want to believe it was coming, and Coach said we weren’t going to trade him.’’
Gruden said it wasn’t part of his plan to trade cornerstone pieces such as Mack and Cooper when he took the job.
Through six games, Mack has terrorized opposing offenses with 20 tackles, five sacks, four forced fumbles, one interception and one touchdown. The Raiders, meanwhile, rank last in the NFL with seven sacks.
‘‘When what you say and what you do are two different things, there is a problem,’’ another player said. ‘‘We all have to believe in each other and pull in one direction.’’
Though the Raiders are clearly rebuilding by stockpiling draft picks, the strategy is a significant departure from an offseason in which they signed multiple veterans, including running back Doug Martin, receiver Jordy Nelson and cornerback Rashaan Melvin.
‘‘You have to wonder if we haven’t been playing for draft picks all along, despite everything the coaches told us at training camp,’’ another player said.