Jack Del Rio: “Goal is to win our Division”

In a refreshing change of pace from the cookie-cutter answer given by most coaches and players, new Oakland Raiders head coach Jack Del Rio has announced his team’s top priority this season is to win not the Super Bowl, but the AFC West.

Speaking at the “Meet the Raiders” Coaches Reception, Del Rio declared, “Goal number one is to win our division. And I don’t see why not,” he added with a look of sincerity to the crowd of Oakland fans and former players alike.

“We came back here to build this thing back to where it belongs, which is ‘great’, once again,” Del Rio continued. “I promise you, when you go into the stadium this fall and you watch our team perform, that our team will play harder and [with] more sustained energy than anything you’ve seen.”

Of course, it’s very easy to put on a front of confidence before a crowd of well-to-do gladhanders than it is to deliver said promises on the field. It’s hard to be optimistic about a team that took two-thirds of the regular season to register its first win in 2014, but the Raiders certainly look on the upswing with a young core of offensive and defensive cornerstones that will only get better in coming seasons.

So, how can the Raiders realistically secure a home playoff game in 2015? The Denver Broncos are fielding big question marks in new coach Gary Kubiak and ageing quarterback Peyton Manning. The Kansas City Chiefs will start an inexperienced O-line protecting Alex Smith, who doesn’t exactly strike fear in the hearts of his enemies. And the San Diego Chargers face a brutal schedule that features six playoff teams from 2014.

Are the Raiders a shoo-in? Hardly, but with talented prospects like Derek Carr, Khalil Mack and Amari Cooper in the silver and black, patience is the name of the game for Oakland.

It seems like ever since Eli Manning had the “audacity” to call himself an elite quarterback all those years ago, every coach and player has felt the need to promise the world every season. It’s nice to see Del Rio taking things a little slower and understanding that the Raiders are not an overnight fix.