Associated Press
The NFL notebook …
ALAMEDA, Calif. ó Hue Jackson began his Oakland Raiders coaching career with the same sort of bravado that made him so popular in his one season as the teamís offensive coordinator.
ěWeíre going to build a bully here,î Jackson said Tuesday. ěThis is the Raiders. We know exactly where weíre headed and what we want to do. I think our players today are very excited about where they are going.î
Jackson was introduced at a 100-minute news conference by owner Al Davis two weeks after the Raiders announced they were not picking up the option to retain Tom Cable as coach. While much of the time was spent discussing why Cable was not retained, and other matters such as the collective bargaining agreement and stadium issues, the purpose of the news conference was to introduce Jackson.
This hiring was conducted relatively quickly based on past Raiders searches that carried until February. Davis said he talked to three candidates he had interviewed previously, mostly by phone, but quickly decided he already had his man on staff.
ěEvery thing pointed toward the guy on my right. Everything,î Davis said. ěI donít see anything from a character, personality, anything that would not, not let me raise his hand and say he should be the coach of the Raiders and be the ambassador to the Raider Nation and the country and around the world.î
MCDANIELS
ST. LOUIS ó The St. Louis Rams hired former Denver Broncos coach Josh McDaniels as their offensive coordinator on Tuesday.
The 34-year-old McDaniels replaces Pat Shurmur, who was hired by the Cleveland Browns as head coach last week.
ěWe are happy to announce that Josh will be a part of our staff,î coach Steve Spagnuolo said in a statement. ěIíve always recognized that he is one of the top offensive minds in the NFL. We think he is a great addition to our organization.î
McDaniels parlayed success as an offensive coordinator with the New England Patriots into his first head coaching job and at age 32 was the NFLís youngest coach in 2009. He favors the spread offense, run by quarterback Sam Bradford in college.
BRONCOS
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. ó Pat Bowlen says in a letter to season ticket holders that last season was his most difficult in his more than a quarter century as owner of the Denver Broncos and he pledges to restore integrity and a winning culture to a franchise rocked by problems on and off the field.
The letter was part of the season ticket renewal packet that began arriving Tuesday.
SINGLETARY
MINNEAPOLIS ó Two members of the Monsters of the Midway defense from Chicago’s famed championship team are reuniting in Minnesota.
Ex-San Francisco head coach Mike Singletary is joining former teammate Leslie Frazier’s staff with the Vikings. Singletary will be the linebackers coach and assistant head coach under Frazier, who was named head coach two weeks ago. Singletary told ESPN 1000 in Chicago during a radio interview earlier in the day he’s coming to Minnesota.
Singletary was 18-22 in two-plus seasons in charge of the 49ers, who fired him last month before their final game.