Kelly is Ready to Lead the Raiders Back to Being Champions

The Las Vegas Raiders do not need to look anywhere else but to Champ Kelly as their next permanent General Manager.

Las Vegas is commonly referred to as "Sin City," but in the case of Interim General Manager Champ Kelly and the Las Vegas Raiders, it should be called the place where dreams come true.

The Las Vegas Raiders are riding a wave of emotion as under the "Interim" leadership of Kelly and Coach Antonio Pierce, and they have been able to save a season.

The organization finally is showing signs of what the Raiders were in the past and tangibly are becoming today.

But there is an adage about success. It took many years to get there for it to have happened suddenly.

That is true for the Raiders, who have struggled for decades to return to the real Raiders Way, and for Kelly, who has patiently awaited his chance to lead an organization.

But one mistake people have made for years with Champ Kelly is underestimating him.

His mild demeanor masks a highly competitive and shrewd evaluator of talent. He doesn't have to make you feel inadequate to get his point across, but don't let the smile that beams from ear to ear fool you; he is as tough as anyone and as competitive as can be.

Being a Raider is a lot of things, but one thing that embodies the Raider Way is toughness. 

Kelly might may not be boisterous like Pierce and Lyle Alzado, but he is tough and intelligent, and constantly finds himself the most competent man in the room.

Kelly is ready to lead the Las Vegas Raiders back to being CHAMPs / Darrell Craig Harris, Raiders Today

One AFC Executive who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he didn't feel his employer would appreciate him talking about Raider personnel issues, told me for this article: "Champ is so humble, but he doesn't walk into a room where he might not be the only one, but no one is ever smarter. He is the most prepared and smartest person in the room. He doesn't have to tell you."

If you missed my EXCLUSIVE: 1-On-1 With Raiders Interim GM Champ Kelly, you can read it here.

Kelly and I share many mutual friends in the interest of fair disclosure, so we had a familiarity before he became the Interim General Manager.

Through those other relationships, I got to know what Kelly was about, and I even said after the removal of Mike Mayock that he would be an excellent choice for the Silver and Black's General Manager.

Now, there is no question.

I do not need to write a list of potential candidates. This decision is easy for Mark Davis, as easy as whether or not to wear a Raiders jacket.

The question around Kelly is not if he will be a General Manager one day, but when. If the Raiders don't remove the interim tag, they will spend decades like the teams that didn't draft Peyton Manning. 

"We could have had him," several team said later. 

That isn't hyperbole; that is the typical school of thought around the NFL.

One mutual, close friend that Kelly and I share, is highly respected in the National Football League -- the former Ohio State Buckeye walk-on and 2006 NFC leading receiver Mike Furrey.

Furrey spent several seasons as an NFL wide-receiver coach with the Chicago Bears and presently is Head Coach at Limestone University.

When Furrey was with the Bears, so was Kelly. The two men formed their friendship as two men who were undervalued and always overproduced, defying expectations. 

Two men from two different worlds who shared a rabid devotion to their Christian faith, their families, and football.  

Over those years together, their conversation was filled with football and faith, and Furrey let us in on the Kelly many of you don't know.

"We always felt there were similarities you had to have to lead an organization," Furrey said. "Whether it was GM or being a Head Coach. You have to understand that it's about the players and what you can do to make sure they perform at a high level. Your passion is always for the players. Your work ethic, desire and dedication was always for the players. You have to keep guys accountable, demand excellence, provide all the information they need to succeed but not overload and allow them to play fast."

The Limestone head coach could easily still be in the NFL, but he is true to his faith and works at Limestone because he genuinely feels that is where God wants him to be now. Furrey doesn't chase the bright lights; neither does Kelly; they seem to find them.

Furrey added about Kelly and his discussions: "Build your scheme around players. You had to be tough enough to make the hard decisions, to help players, but yet at the same time no matter the pick or the hire, you always have to do what's best for the team, and that at times will be unlikeable decisions but they have to be made -- it's your job to protect the brand. It creates clarity amongst the team that you show up, you respect the blessing that you have been given and you go to work! Great structure, great culture!" 

Why does Furrey believe in Kelly and think he is ready? The answer is simple. 

"Champ has earned a tremendous amount of respect around the league," Furrey said. "Players gravitate to him, respect him, and will play for him. He understands the makeup of a locker room, he knows how to mandate greatness out of a scouting department. 

"Coaches will work their tails off for him because of how he treats them, with total respect, great communication, and a demanding of excellence. He's a leader. He's ready!"

When Dave Ziegler and Champ Kelly arrived in the desert, the Raiders' scouting department was not in good shape.

According to one NFL Executive: "The Raiders were in the dark ages, but they totally renovated that scouting department into one of the best in the National Football League. (Ziegler) made it clear that Kelly was a tremendous key to that process, and was owed a great debt of gratitude."

Kelly now commands the scouting department that he ushered into one of the league's best, a significant deal.

But for Furrey, it was easy to identify why coaches and players respect Chap Kelly.

"Champ has earned a tremendous amount of respect around the league," Furrey said. "Players gravitate to him, respect him, and will play for him. He understands the makeup of a locker room. He knows how to mandate greatness out of a scouting department. Coaches will work their tales off for him because of how he treats them, total respect, great communication and a demanding of excellence. He's a leader. He's ready!"

The decision should be an easy one for Raiders owner Mark Davis.

Like the Raiders of old, Kelly will bring a keen eye for talent, an unquestionable work ethic and commitment and the rugged nature required of his office.

Make no mistake about Kelly. His smile and warm personality are genuine. He didn't grow up a Raider like Mark Davis and Antonio Pierce, but he is one. He embodies all the qualities that have made the Raiders what they are.

Kelly is a Raider, but if Mark Davis lets the native of Campbellton, Fla,, get away, the Raiders will regret it. Davis has his guy, a Raider; there is no doubt Kelly is the guy to lead them back to being champions.

The Silver and Black continue the season on New Year's Eve versus the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Don't miss it on Sunday, December 31, at 1 p.m. EST/10 a.m. PST.

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