In one of his first official events as the Oakland Raiders’ new head coach, Jon Gruden met the media Wednesday morning at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis.
During his news conference, Gruden, who spent the past decade as a color analyst for “Monday Night Football,” was asked for his thoughts on the New England Patriots.
“Oh man, I’m envious of the Patriots, I really am,” Gruden said, as transcribed by ESPN.com’s Mike Reiss. “The Patriot Way — finding players that are versatile. Finding players that can adapt on a weekly basis to win a game. They don’t care how they beat you, either.
“They’re not afraid to use the 60-minute clock to beat you in the final seconds. And they’re not afraid to blow you out, either. But they can morph themselves into a two-back team; they can come out with five receivers and play no-back formations. It’s just a pleasure to watch them adapt them every year — to the new rules, and to the new men on their roster and coaching staff.”
The Patriots have appeared in eight Super Bowls since head coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady arrived in Foxboro in 2000, winning five. Their bid for back-to-back titles ended earlier this month with a 41-33 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LII.
“It all starts with Belichick and Tom Brady, certainly,” Gruden said. “But the people behind the scenes there deserve a lot of credit.”
A loss to the Patriots in the 2001 playoffs — the famed Tuck Rule Game — ended Gruden’s first tenure as Raiders head coach. He spent the next seven seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers before transitioning into a media role.
