Allen pledges smart, disciplined play

ALAMEDA - The Raiders introduced another head coach Monday, but this installment felt different from the preceding 14, because Al Davis was nowhere to be seen.

The late owner's heir, Mark Davis, briefly initiated the proceedings in the auditorium at Raiders headquarters, then turned it over to new general manager Reggie McKenzie, who formally introduced Dennis Allen, the man with whom he had reportedly reached an agreement nearly a week earlier.

There was no chippy banter with the media, no dreamy recollections of the 1970s, no eviscerating of the previous coach.

Love it or hate it, the Raiders seem to be entering a whole new era, and McKenzie and Allen will get the chance to lead them there.

"Reggie got his guy," Mark Davis said. "I got my guy. I got Reggie."

When Davis introduced him to the media on Jan.10, McKenzie confirmed that Hue Jackson had been relieved of command as head coach, and said he would be working from a "short list" of candidates to find a successor. Most figured he would opt for one of his former coworkers in Green Bay, perhaps assistant head coach Winston Moss or defensive coordinator Dom Capers.

But right from the start, McKenzie said, he also focused on Allen, who was highly regarded after four years with the Atlanta Falcons (2002-05), five with the New Orleans Saints (2006-2010) and one with the Denver Broncos as defensive coordinator.

"When he got to New Orleans, going from the defensive line to the secondary, I saw how the secondary vastly improved," McKenzie said. "They won the Super Bowl with Dennis as the secondary coach. And what he did in Denver to turn that defense around, it made me take notice. So the more I researched, the more I talked to different people, I couldn't get a bad word from anyone about coach Dennis Allen."

The Broncos ranked 20th in total defense in 2011, but seemed to get better as the season progressed. Spurred by defensive end Elvis Dumervil and rookie linebacker Von Miller, they tied for 10th in the league with 41 sacks.

McKenzie interviewed several other prospective coaches, but found himself drawn to Allen, who also was a candidate for the Rams job this offseason.

The GM first flew to Denver to meet with Allen, then scheduled a second interview at the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Ala. The longer McKenzie conversed to Allen, the more taken he was with the coach's intelligence and passion.

"It was one of those things, if I had a little guy on my right shoulder, he said, &‘Yeah, that's the guy,'" McKenzie said. "It was kind of, &‘Yeah, that was good, he answered that like I liked it,' and, &‘OK, he presented that, that's right in line.' As the interview went, the more and more I connected."

Al Davis typically signed his head coaches to two-year deals. McKenzie signed Allen signed for four, though the dollar figures have yet to be reported.

Allen, who grew up in Hurst, Texas, was the second-youngest defensive coordinator in the NFL when the Denver Broncos hired him a year ago. Now he becomes the league's youngest head coach at 39 - and he looks even more youthful than his age. He exudes optimism, and his eyes burn with intensity as he speaks.

"It's going to be a tough, smart, disciplined, committed football team," Allen said of the Raiders. "See, you don't win football games in the National Football League by talent alone. ... We have enough talent in our team to compete for a championship, and that's what our goal is going to be every year. We've got to play smart, we've got to play tough, we've got to play disciplined."

That's a tall order on a team that annually leads the NFL in penalties, and has generally been known for its lack of discipline over the past nine non-winning seasons. Under Jackson last year, the Raiders set league records for penalties (163) and penalty yardage (1,358).

Allen even had an answer for that.

"The only way that you create habits is through consistency, doing the same things over and over and over," Allen said. "Well, if you're committing penalties, that becomes a habit. We've got to change those habits, all right? ... It starts with how you operate in practice, OK? And we're going to operate in a manner in practice that, we're going to preach discipline, and discipline is going to be a fundamental factor in what we do every day."

Allen will now begin assembling his staff, a task that McKenzie has said he will leave in the hands of the coach. Al Saunders, the offensive coordinator under Jackson, is the only 2011 assistant still under contract. Allen was noncommittal on Saunders' status.

Meanwhile, Allen gave only a few clues to his strategic leanings, noting that he likes to vary personnel, formations and movement on offense, and acknowledging that he plans to implement an aggressive scheme on defense, though he said he has no preference for a 3-4 system or a 4-3. He said he will not call defensive signals during games.

There are many details to be sorted over the next few months. Certainly, McKenzie understands the risk of hiring a first-time head coach - just as Mark Davis understood the risk of hiring a first-time general manager.

"This is the NFL, guys," McKenzie said. "You're judged by wins and losses. That's how we're gonna be judged. That's how I'm gonna be judged. We win, good decision. We don't? Not so good. It's really that simple."

You can reach Staff Writer Phil Barber at 521-5263 or phil.barber@pressdemocrat.com.