Dec. 6
Jon Gruden has a lot of things on his mind. Notre Dame isn't one of them.

Even though he had innocently proclaimed Notre Dame as "my dream job" back in the summer, Gruden sent word that he will remain as coach of the Oakland Raiders at least for the time remaining on his contract through 2002.

	Coach Jon Gruden has led the Raiders to back-to-back AFC West titles.

Make no mistake: If Gruden had wanted the Notre Dame job, he could have had it. I have been told that the same was true about Ohio State back in January, regardless of anybody's denials.

Think about that. In 11 months, Gruden has resisted the temptation to coach at Ohio State and Notre Dame, two of the most prestigious institutions in college football.

What does it mean? Does he love the Raiders that much? Will this be a catalyst to a contract extension that keeps him in Oakland?

In my discussion with the 38-year-old Gruden on Thursday morning, we didn't delve deep into his future. Obviously, one reason is that he is obsessed with the present. It isn't time to talk about his dreams, he has time only to confront some nightmarish problems besetting his current Raiders team -- injuries, a shaky defense and a star player in Darrell Russell facing a possible one-year suspension.

We joked about making QB Rich Gannon a two-way player to shore up the defense. Guys like Gannon and Tim Brown motivate Gruden's sense of loyalty to say "no" to the Notre Dames and Ohio States of the world. I really believe Gruden can make sense of this -- one can see that the window on his contract through 2002 coincides with the windows on the contracts and/or peak years remaining of Gannon and Brown.

Gruden has accomplished an amazing thing in his fifth year with the Raiders. This is no longer Al Davis' team. This is Jon Gruden's team. His ability to stand apart from Davis won over his players. They have no doubt that Gruden runs the team. His stature has grown within the front office.

Now I don't pretend to really know the extent of Gruden's relationship with Davis. My instincts tell me it is one of respect. Gruden loves the tradition of the "Silver & Black." In fact, it was that mystique that Gruden embraced when he accepted a fairly one-sided financial deal against the advice of many friends and counselors. Who is responsible for that tradition and mystique? Davis. He is a Hall of Famer.

I know they aren't buddies, but most owners and coaches are not. Philosophically, they are a pretty good pairing. However corny it sounds, Davis' motto of "commitment to excellence" is the way Jon Gruden lives his profession. Gruden embraces veteran players, even castoffs, the way Davis did in building a dynasty. Neither man cares about how artsy the victories come ... with both, it's just win, darling (oh, I mean baby).

Guys like Rich Gannon and Tim Brown motivate Gruden's sense of loyalty to the Raiders.

Yet Davis obviously struggles with coddling Gruden's growing, immense popularity and success. When Gruden's four-year, $2 million deal expired at the end of the 2001 season, Davis exercised the two-year option for about $1.2 million per season. Sure, it's more money than Gruden ever thought he would make, but the right thing to do was to tear up the option and award Gruden with a "market" contract. He could have even gone below market.

Despite urgings from lieutenants within the Raiders organization to do just that, Davis has resisted. I hear there are times he wonders whether Gruden will be a classic burnout coach based on his long hours and hard-driving personality. Still, Davis was the originator of the "10-year" theory -- the effective life span of a coach with one team. Gruden will have four years before he hits the mark after this contract.

I imagine the thought of paying a coach $3 million per year is hard for Davis to swallow. Well, how does $4 to $5 million go down? That's what Gruden will command on the open market when he becomes a free agent at the end of the 2002 season.

It's funny, because a few owners out there are paying attention. Some of those owners are even tempted to hold off firing their current coach for a year because they hear what I still hear -- Gruden almost certainly will be free in 2003.