ALAMEDA, Calif. — The Oakland Raiders denied a report by ESPN on Saturday that they have made a decision to bring Tom Cable back as coach next season, saying the evaluation process is still ongoing.
“We’ve never made any statement that the head coach would not be back, that has been media speculation from the beginning,” senior executive John Herrera said in a statement to The Associated Press on Saturday night. “We’ve consistently stated that we’re going through an evaluation process to determine the direction that the organization needs to go. The process is ongoing and has not reached a conclusion.”
ESPN reported earlier Saturday that Davis had decided to retain Cable for the final year of his contract in 2010, citing a source close to the situation.
Cable has been talking with Davis about his job since the season ended Jan. 3. Cable went 5-11 in his first full season as Raiders coach. He is 9-19 since replacing Lane Kiffin early in the 2008 season, leading the Raiders to their NFL-worst seventh straight season with at least 11 losses.
Cable has strong support among the players, who are hoping for some continuity after the team had five coaches in the past seven seasons. The Raiders showed some progress last season, beating playoff teams Cincinnati and Philadelphia and winning road games in December against Pittsburgh and Denver.
But Oakland also lost to last-place teams in Kansas City, Cleveland and Washington. The Raiders scored only 17 touchdowns in 16 games as former No. 1 overall pick JaMarcus Russell struggled before being benched midway through his third season.
Along with talking to Cable, Davis also has been meeting with potential assistants since the season ended. He hired Mike Waufle as defensive line coach Friday. The team highlighted Waufle’s relationship with Cable at the University of California in the release announcing that move.
Davis also has met with Baltimore Ravens quarterbacks coach Hue Jackson about a potential job. Jackson also worked with Cable and Waufle at Cal in the 1990s.
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