LONDON – Jon Gruden knows the Raiders are a project, a unit that must be rebuilt and developed to reach the competitive level attention during his previous tenure in Oakland, when playoff runs were regular.
Actions made that clear. His offseason acquisitions, his dismissal of several recent draft picks and, of course, the Khalil Mack trade were all signs he believes this team needed a radical reconstruction.
The Raiders have been competitive in several games, but have ultimately earned a 1-4 record heading into Sunday's game against the Seattle Seahawks here in London.
A British reporter asked Gruden on Friday how close the Raiders are to turning a corner. Gruden's answer was honest and direct.
"I think we have a ways to go. We have a lot of to prove," the Raiders head coach said. "We're playing eight rookies right now, and before the season's over we might be playing more than that. We have a lot to prove. We need to see some people get healthy and help us. We have a lot to prove."
Gruden is trying to build a winning culture here, one established recently by Jack Del Rio that was demolished during a tumultuous 2017 season. He brought in seasoned veterans to help achieve that end, and work the team's young foundation through tough times.
"Whether you're a young team or a veteran team, winning one game is no fun," Gruden said. "I think we're determined to continue building this team. I think a lot of these veterans are here for that sole responsibility of laying down the foundation of how we want to prepare, how we want to practice and how we want to compete. I'm proud of our team for doing that. He haven't won a lot of games, but we've been competitive. Hopefully we continue to do that and see the emergence of some young Oakland Raiders."
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Gruden can take some time with the rebuild, with less pressure to win right away given his 10-year contract and close relationship with owner Mark Davis.
He didn't necessarily agree with that notion.
"Pressure is why I came back to coaching," Gruden said. "You just love that feeling. You have an opportunity to thrive in pressure situations. You either feel pressure or you apply it. You have apply pressure to the situation and work as hard as you can, do all you can, go home at night and then do the same thing the next day. That's what I'm doing."
Gruden will continue to grind from week-to-week and season-to-season trying to get the Silver and Black. Time will tell if he's successful or not. Gruden believes his formula will pay dividends in the long term.
"I know what we have to do here," Gruden said. "I know where we are, and I know how far we have to go. We're going to keep digging and working. I'm going to let Mark Davis make all the decisions about what he wants to do in the future."
