Sources: Raiders to name Cable coach

Tom Cable will be the Oakland Raiders' head coach for the 2009 season, a source close to another candidate for the job told ESPN's Michael Smith.

The source said the Raiders informed the other candidate Wednesday of their decision to go with Cable. A second source with knowledge of the Raiders' operation also told Smith the Raiders have settled on Cable.

ESPN reached Raiders senior executive John Herrera, who denied that the club had decided on Cable as its coach.

"The decision has not been made," Herrera said. "That's not correct. At some point here we will have a head coach, but as of now that decision has not been made. We are assembling a staff as you know, but a decision on the head man has not been made."

Cable served as interim head coach in 2008 after the in-season firing of Lane Kiffin. Cable has been considered the front-runner ever since he helped the Raiders finish the season with consecutive victories while winning three of their last six games.

Still unclear are the status of contract negotiations with Cable and when the Raiders' decision will be announced.

In other news, the Raiders added two more assistant coaches to their staff, making Paul Hackett their quarterbacks coach and hiring Dwaine Board to mentor the defensive line.

Hackett, a 40-year coaching veteran, assisted the Raiders' coaching staff with special projects last season. The former head coach at USC and offensive coordinator with the Jets and Kansas City will be in charge of JaMarcus Russell's development in Oakland.

Board was the Seattle Seahawks' defensive line coach from 2003 to '08. He also spent 23 years in the Bay Area with the San Francisco 49ers as a player and assistant coach.

Information from ESPN's Michael Smith and The Associated Press was used in this report.

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