The NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported on Christmas Eve that Gruden is doing a bit of a personnel dance, contacting former assistants to see if they might be interested in a new gig.

“Gruden right now is going through the process of reaching out to former assistants and friends in the coaching industry to see if they would potentially come with him if he were able to get a head coaching job,” Rapoport said. “Of course, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers do have Dirk Koetter on the hot seat. That would be his preferred destination.”

It’s important to note a few points. First, this isn’t an indication that Gruden has a new job lined up, or that he’s even being considered. Plus, he’s been out of the coaching game since the end of the 2008 season. That’s two generations in NFL time. The players he’d be drafting next year were in elementary school the last time Gruden wore a headset.

But the top quality NFL teams look for in a new coach is an old coach, and Gruden has spent the last decade at the top of every college and pro fan’s wish list for a new top dog. Plus, he’s got deep contacts across the league, and could assemble a strong roster of assistants that would, in theory, help him through the rough spots.

It’ll make for a fascinating next few weeks of discussion, or a fatter ESPN paycheck for Gruden, one of the two.

Oakland is preparing to pursue ESPN analyst Jon Gruden with an offer so strong it could even include an ownership stake in the Raiders, according to league sources.

Gruden will be tempted to accept it, according to sources, but would prefer not to make any decisions until the regular season finishes Sunday and the Raiders make a final determination on their current head coach, Jack Del Rio, who signed a contract extension last summer.

But Oakland long has appealed to Gruden for a variety of reasons. He would return to an organization he didn't want to leave in 2001, he would inherit a young quarterback in Derek Carr whom he feels strongly about, and he would get to coach a team that is slated to move in 2020 to Las Vegas, where he would not have to pay state tax, as he does now in Florida, where he currently lives. Gruden's contract even could be backloaded to pay him more in the Nevada years and lessen his tax burden during the Oakland ones.

Raiders owner Mark Davis has offered Gruden an ownership stake in the past, according to sources, and if he were willing to do so again, the contract then would have to be approved by all 32 NFL owners. The NFL's finance committee also would have to vet Gruden, but there is no reason to think it would not approve the deal.

Every damn time you think the Raiders are gonna turn the corner, they step on the rake.

Every damn time you think the Raiders are gonna turn the corner, they step on the rake.

Yup. Derek Carr is gonna be backing up Bortles in Jacksonville in three years at this rate.

The Raiders need a tweak not a bulldozer. This is all about Vegas sizzle.

Gruden was not a great coach. He was a good coach...a decade ago. I'd say its much more likely the game passed him by then he will do something special for the Raiders

He's off my TV, that's really the only important thing to take away from this.

Raiders are giving new head coach Jon Gruden a 10-year contract, the longest coaching deal in NFL history, sources tell ESPN.

It's a long deal but it isn't a ridiculous amount of money. What are guys like Belichick and Reid making?

This is terrible.

Yeah, I'm not reading hardly any positive reaction.