ALAMEDA, Calif. -- Al Davis had a certain glint in his eye when Jon Gruden's name came up that day in October 2008.
Sure, the news conference was all about Davis' firing of Lane Kiffin and elevating Tom Cable as interim head coach of the Oakland Raiders, but Gruden's name was uttered, same as it ever was.
"Jon was a good coach," Davis acknowledged nearly seven years after trading Gruden to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for two first-round draft picks, a pair of second-rounders and $8 million.
"But don't forget, I took Jon [when] no one else even knew who he was.