Raiders face balancing act in pitching free agents

Lindsay H. Jones | USA TODAY Sports

Jack Del Rio has an important role in his new job as the head coach of the Oakland Raiders: Recruiter.

With the 2015 free agency period well underway-- the official start is set for 4 p.m. Tuesday -- Del Rio now finds himself trying to lure free agents to Oakland, a place that has not been a desirable NFL destination for years.

Del Rio is expecting hard questions from free agents and their representatives in the coming days, especially once the Raiders get prospective players into their facility in Alameda, Calif.

He is prepared to talk about the franchise's past – and how the team hasn't had a winning record since reaching the Super Bowl in 2002 -- and the future, and whether that will be in Oakland or elsewhere with the Raiders among three teams exploring relocation to the Los Angeles area.

"We want to make sure we're honest and forthright, and these guys understand the situation that they're going into," Del Rio told USA TODAY Sports. "The bottom line that we are the Oakland Raiders and our intent is to stay here in Oakland. Our owner, Mark Davis, has said that repeatedly, and we will continue to let people know that. That's where we are. That's where it starts."

Part of what Del Rio and general manager Reggie McKenzie have been working on over the past two months since Del Rio was hired has been to figure out what sort of players they want to attract, what holes they need to fill and how they would reshape their roster, knowing that they'd have the ability to be active in free agency this spring.

The Raiders have cash to spend with at least an expected $60 million in salary cap space, and an impetus to spend it after falling below the 89% cash threshold required by the collective bargaining agreement.

They made room last week by cutting a few veterans. With other impending free agents unlikely to be re-signed, the Raiders head into the new league year with holes at nearly every position outside of quarterback.

Del Rio won't use the word "rebuilding" in his pitch, and isn't looking for players who will settle for losing. Still, it won't be an easy sell.

Helping his case will be what Del Rio can show players when they visit. Part of his bid for the Raiders job was a request for upgrades around the facility, starting with new grass practice fields to replace an artificial turf field with a surface so hard that was nicknamed "The Rock" and a revamped weight room. Both projects are in process, Del Rio said.

"We care about the environment they come to work in every day, we care about them as players and people. We're going to have a real positive atmosphere," Del Rio said.

And no NFL franchise needs of a culture change more than the Raiders, who have won only 11 games in the past three years, and haven't made the playoffs since reaching the Super Bowl in 2002. Thanks to years of bloated contracts misses in free agency, poor trades and draft misses, the Raiders spent much of the last decade struggling to even be competitive.

It took two years for McKenzie to undo the salary cap disaster he inherited when he was hired in 2012, and more than $45 million in dead money on the books in 2013 from bad deals. That left the Raiders unable to spend until last year, when the Raiders had cash. But they couldn't attract top-flight free agents.

Del Rio knows his pitch will have to be about more than just dollars, especially after top players in the 2015 free agent class are no longer available after players like defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh (agreed to terms with the Miami Dolphins), wide receiver Randall Cobb (re-signed with Green Bay) and safety Devin McCourty (re-signed with New England) striking mega deals over the weekend.

"It has to be about the love of playing football, and wanting to be part of an organization that is an ascending organization. One where we're going to come in here and create a culture, and they can be a part of that," Del Rio said. "This is an organization with a very rich tradition and obviously we want to build on that. Part of that is getting guys that are coming here and being part of the group of men that brings this organization back to greatness."

But first, Del Rio must give potential Raiders a real reason to believe that things will be different. That process will start with bragging about the 2014 draft class, which features a cornerstone defensive player in pass rusher Khalil Mack and quarterback Derek Carr, whom the Raiders believe can be the franchise's long-term starter after years of instability at the position.

"We feel like we have a good core of players that we're going to add to, and we feel like with our cap situation and our cash situation that we're going to be players in terms of acquiring veteran players and then we have all of our draft picks and we have a good draft position. We'll add some players that way, and then we're going to go compete," Del Rio said. "I mean, I'm not looking to be a real patient guy that's going to take multiple years to get things tracking in the right direction. We expect to have success right away."

With the top names on the free agent market disappearing before the official signing period begins, so did the chance for the Raiders to make a big splash. The biggest addition to come as the league year opens will be center Rodney Hudson, who will receive a deal expected to be worth $44.5 million over five years.

It's a nice signing – and Hudson was the best center available – but hardly a sexy move that will get Oakland buzzing.

That's not necessarily a bad thing, said former Raiders quarterback Rich Gannon, now an analyst for Sirius NFL Radio. To rebuild the Raiders, it will take multiple players – not just a couple big-name free agent additions, Gannon said.

"You better make sure you bring in the right players that are willing to make sacrifices, that are willing to pour their heart and soul into rebuilding and hope that their legacy is going to be that they changed the fortunes of a franchise that has been down now for a while," Gannon told USA TODAY Sports. "It's going to take someone to go in there and realize, 'Hey look, this is not like going to New England, or Denver, or Green Bay, or Pittsburgh. It's just not that place.' This is going to take someone who is willing to roll up their sleeves and get their hands dirty to turn it around. I'm looking for those guys."

Gannon wasn't convinced Suh would have been that guy.

But another former Raider can understand if the start of free agency has felt underwhelming. Kirk Morrison, an Oakland native who played linebacker for the Raiders from 2005-2009 and still buys his father season tickets each year, was hoping the Raiders could have landed both Suh and Cobb.

But with those players off the board other targets could be Denver Broncos defensive tackle Terrance Knighton, who played for Del Rio in both Jacksonville and with the Broncos, Bengals tight end Jermaine Gresham or Browns tight end Jordan Cameron. The wide receiver market could heat up again if stars like Percy Harvin (Jets) or Andre Johnson (Houston) get released by Tuesday afternoon.

"It's a tough break for them, but I think this may help them in the long run," Morrison told USA TODAY Sports. "Use the money to build some depth and players that can play. There are some good parts out there that you can add."

Still, it might cost more than market-value to do it, Morrison said. That's just the reality for a franchise that has been down for as many years as Oakland has been.

"The Raiders, because of where they are right now, have to overpay a little bit to bring guys in. It's just the way it is," Morrison said. "Raiders are still a lower-echelon team in the national football league and until you start winning, you have to do that."

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Follow Lindsay H. Jones on Twitter @ByLindsayHJones