The Oakland Raiders and general manager Reggie McKenzie agreed to a four-year contract extension on Friday. The new deal keeps the former-Raider linebacker around until 2020.
The 53-year old has overseen the impressive turnaround of the Raiders over the last few seasons under owner Mark Davis.
The Turnaround
The Raiders are enjoying a summer in which they are being tipped for a winning record and a playoff spot in the upcoming season. The rebuild of the last few seasons is largely down to the very successful drafts in which Oakland selected Khalil Mack, Derek Carr and Amari Cooper and the future is bright under McKenzie's leadership as GM.
After a 7-9 season in 2015, the Raiders emerged as a hotspot for free agents and their rebuild continued as they signed Sean Smith, Reggie Nelson, Kelechi Osemele and Bruce Irvin this summer. McKenzie's success in turning around a struggling organization, since he joined as GM in 2012, has been impressive and Raiders owner Mark Davis rewarded him for the progress.
Davis Knows McKenzie's Impact
Davis spoke to ESPN about the contract extension, saying, "The results and the job he's done show that he deserves it...He wants to be here and we want him."
"Reggie has put together a hell of a staff in player personnel, done a great job on the cap where now we can build a team."
Davis continued by saying he didn't want McKenzie to "become a free agent" and that "it was time to honor him."
The Raiders are poised to make a playoff push for the first time since Rich Gannon was their quarterback in 2003, the year in which they lost the Super Bowl. With emerging superstars such as Derek Carr, David Amerson and Amari Cooper to accompany established stars like Bruce Irvin, Sean Smith and Khalil Mack, Oakland could be making plenty of noise in the coming months thanks to Reggie McKenzie.