Reggie McKenzie has agreed to terms to become the Raiders’ general manager, ESPN reported late Thursday night.
First reported by ESPN’s Adam Schefter, McKenzie also confirmed the hiring through text message through ESPNmilwaukee.com.
Raiders officials could not be reached for comment.
McKenzie, 48, has worked in the personnel department of the Green Bay Packers for the past 19 years. He was a 10th-round draft pick of the Los Angeles Raiders in 1985.
Whether McKenzie will take over immediately is unclear. He can begin his duties with the Raiders only if the Packers agree, since he is currently under contract with Green Bay.
He comes with the recommendation of two former Raiders’ front office executives who also worked for Green Bay _ Ron Wolf and Ken Herock. Herock has been a presence at the Raiders facility and at games since the death of owner Al Davis on Oct. 8.
Former Green Bay executive Andrew Brandt, who works for ESPN as well as at the National Football Post, described McKenzie’s attributes before word of his hiring by the Raiders:
“I worked with him for nine years and what you see is what you get, a deliberate and hard working personnel evaluator that has great instincts on players, that does the necessary work to evaluate them and has experience on b oth the college and pro side.
“He comes from a Packer philosophy of draft and develop, and is not afraid to play young players at the expense of more established veterans.”
The Raiders presently have only a fifth-round draft pick going into the 2012 draft, although they could pick up compensatory picks based on the loss of free agents last season.
It is not known how much input head coach Hue Jackson had into the hiring of McKenzie, although former club exec Wolf recommended McKenzie to owner Mark Davis not long after the death of his father.
In his weekly Sirius NFL radio interview Tuesday, Jackson said he had no problem working with a general manager after operating with much of the organizational power following the death of Al Davis.
“I don’t have any other vision or any other ego. My whole thing is about winning and whatever it takes to win,” Jackson said. “Do I want to make sure I have an idea and have some input on who I put on a team? Yes. But at the end of the day, if the chain of command starts with the G.M. when it comes to those decisions, I’m fine with that, too.”
The Raiders had no announcements regarding staff changes, although they have reportedly told defensive coordinator Chuck Bresnahan, linebackers coach Greg Biekert, cornerbacks coach Rod Woodson and safeties coach Kevin Ross they will not return.
