It’s rather obvious that the Oakland Raiders’ 2018 season hasn’t gone according to plan for first-year head coach Jon Gruden.
Oakland entered Sunday’s action against the Arizona Cardinals with a league-worst 1-8 record. It ranks in the bottom three of the league in both scoring offense and points allowed.
Meanwhile, there’s seemingly something happening behind the scenes between Gruden and his players. Said friction now boiled over to the sideline. Here, we see Gruden and franchise quarterback Derek Carr exchanging pleasantries.
Gruden not happy!! At least we know @derekcarrqb is no longer being coddled pic.twitter.com/8XnG4KTOSi
— Kid Santi (@antjustwinbaby) November 18, 2018
How bad was it? Those at the scene in Arizona reported that Raiders backup tight end Lee Smith had to grab Gruden by the neck to calm his down as he went after Carr.
Per @townsendradio, Lee Smith "grabbed" Jon Gruden by the neck to calm him down as he got after Derek Carr in heated sideline exchange.
— Paul Gutierrez (@PGutierrezESPN) November 18, 2018
There’s no further information as it relates to what led to this confrontation. Carr had completed 5-of-10 passes for two touchdowns to help Oakland pull even with Arizona at 14 late in the second quarter.