ALAMEDA, Calif. - From the moment Jon Gruden was brought back for a second stint as coach of the Oakland Raiders with a 10-year contract, general manager Reggie McKenzie's longevity in the position was in serious doubt.
That only eroded more with each departure of one of McKenzie's prized former draft picks and ended when he was fired Monday, less than two years after he was named the NFL's executive of the year.
With the Raiders unable to build off that breakthrough 12-win season in 2016 and McKenzie's recent drafts failing to generate many impact players, the move to cut ties with McKenzie was made after Oakland beat Pittsburgh 24-21 for its third win of the season.
McKenzie's influence with the Raiders had waned ever since the triumphant news conference to welcome Gruden back to Oakland in January. Gruden got rid of several of the players McKenzie had acquired, most notably edge rusher Khalil Mack and receiver Amari Cooper.
"I'm not going to sit up here today and talk about any disconnect," Gruden said. "We were connected. We were very good friends and very connected. I'll leave it at that."
Gruden said owner Mark Davis informed McKenzie of the move and the Raiders only issued a brief statement thanking McKenzie for his time in Oakland and wishing him well.
"We won a game last night and I went home," Gruden said. "Obviously, there was a meeting last night and changes have been made. I respect everything that this organization is about. I can't exactly answer why the change was made last night, but changes were made, and we got to continue to fight and continue to build this team back and that's what we are going to do."
Director of college scouting Shawn Herock will handle the GM duties during the search process.
McKenzie was the first major hire made by Davis after he took over the team following the death of his father, Al, in 2011. McKenzie modernized the franchise, got the team out of salary cap purgatory, and built a roster that went 12-4 under coach Jack Del Rio in 2016, earning him honors as the league's top executive.
But the Raiders slumped to a 6-10 record last season, leading Davis to fire Del Rio and get Gruden.