Downing ‘ready for anything'

The Raiders decision to cut ties with offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave caught some people by surprise considering how well Oakland has played the past two seasons but there had been rumblings for a few weeks that a change might be coming.

Although head coach Jack Del Rio has yet to speak publicly on the decision, it seems that the Raiders were concerned about the possibility of losing then-quarterbacks coach Todd Downing who has been instrumental in the development of quarterback Derek Carr. Downing was rumored to be targeted by multiple teams for coordinator positions before the Raiders promoted him after opting not to bring back Musgrave.

“I wouldn’t characterize it as a surprise because I’m ready for anything that comes my way in this profession, but I was looking forward to the opportunity to run an offense somewhere in the NFL in 2017,” Downing told reporters covering the team. “I just feel really fortunate that Coach Del Rio has the trust in me, moving forward, to have that opportunity be here.”

Downing, 36, said he doesn’t plan to shake up the Raiders offense much. He wants to bring a more balanced attack to the table after Musgrave was criticized at times by Del Rio for abandoning the running game too soon. Beyond that, Downing believes Oakland’s offense will look almost the same as it did in 2016.

“It will be very subtle,” Downing said. “We’re going to keep the same system terminology. There’s no reason to change any of that stuff. All we’re doing right now is finding the ways that we can all individually do our jobs better, prepare our positions better and how we can just quarter turn a couple things to make the offense as efficient as possible. I believe in efficiency. And if we’re efficient in a concept, I am not going to go changing it just for change sake. If we’re inefficient or we failed to live up to expectations in a certain concept, then I am going to figure out a way to tinker with it and make it work. If I can’t make it work, we simply won’t do it anymore.”