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Why Jon Gruden could return to the Raiders in 2015

JOHN G. MABANGLO / Getty

It's been almost 15 years since the Oakland Raiders brought an end to the Jon Gruden era, sending the star head coach to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in a blockbuster deal that would land them two first-round selections, two second-round selections and $8-million in return.

Of course, the very next season, Gruden would break the hearts of Raider Nation, leading the Buccaneers to a Super Bowl championship via a dominant win over his former team on football's biggest stage.

While such circumstances could easily spark never-ending bitterness, the link between Gruden and the Raiders has not only remained, but seemed to strengthen over time.

Now, with the Raiders officially moving on from head coach Dennis Allen on Tuesday, just four weeks into the 2014 campaign, the speculation about a second tenure for Gruden with the Silver and Black has already begun.

Early indications are that the organization is inclined to hire a "superstar" head coach next offseason and, as NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reports, Gruden would be the Raiders' first choice to do so.

It's no secret that Raiders owner Mark Davis still thinks highly of the man who Raider Nation calls "Chucky", as he had no problem admitting that the two could reach out to one another with the head coaching position set to open up at the end of the year.

Although he has been linked to countless high-profile jobs since leaving the NFL sidelines for the ESPN broadcast booth, it's this opportunity with the Raiders - a team that hasn't had a winning season since 2002 - that may in fact be the one to lure Gruden back to the sidelines. CBSSports' Jason LaCanfora reported late in 2013 that the Raiders remained an enticing option to Gruden to restore the franchise's glory.

No, the Raiders aren't any closer to being a playoff team since the time of that report, but they have the pieces in place that arguably make the job more attractive. Pieces that include a young quarterback in Derek Carr - who Gruden reportedly thinks quite highly of - a budding star linebacker in Khalil Mack, a 2015 first-round draft selection almost certain to be in one of the top three slots, and what should be more salary cap space than any other NFL team.

Whether Gruden truly is the man for this job is a different question altogether, though, but don't rule it out just yet. Sporting a 95-81 career record (38-26 with the Raiders), he knows how to win in this league.

Questions as to how well he would fare returning to the sidelines after a six-year absence will certainly emerge, as the NFL - possibly more than any other sport - sees significant change and evolution in extremely short periods of time.

Working in his favor, however, is his continued involvement in the game. The analysis and film breakdowns from his current position with ESPN have him in-tune with the league's ever-changing ways, and the constant interaction with teams and coaches around the league make it possible for him to put together a formidable coaching staff.

Beyond that, the main argument against his qualifications point to the sudden demise of the Buccaneers following their Super Bowl championship. It's thought by some that Gruden's predecessor, Tony Dungy, should get a significant amount of credit for having constructed the team in years prior.

At the same time, the veteran roster Gruden took over certainly was not without its share of inevitable issues ahead, most notably surrounding the salary cap constraints that plagued the team following their title run.

A relatively clean slate in a second stint with the Raiders would see tempered expectations early on, providing a much different situation overall.

With such a large generation of fans having grown up knowing the Raiders as little more than a perennial bottom feeder, now appears to be the time for change. The organization is in desperate need of the mystique it had for the better part of the 1970's, 80's, and early 2000's, and Gruden has a chance to recapture that now-elusive aura.

In Gruden, the Raiders would get a respected coach who knows how to win, has a genuine affection for the organization, and would put the team in the national spotlight for more positive reasons.

Even this early in the process, it's becoming increasingly possible that Gruden will make his return to the Oakland Raiders in 2015, and we can expect Davis to put on a full-court press to make it happen. For a fan base and organization in need of something to look forward to, it might just be the perfect time for a reunion.

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