Why hiring Josh McDaniels may be a good fit for the Las Vegas Raiders and who he’s hired
Josh McDaniels wants to do it right this time.
Las Vegas Raiders owner Mark Davis has given McDaniels an opportunity to lead the franchise, naming the longtime Patriots assistant as the team’s 22nd head coach.
While highly successful as a key member of the staff in New England, McDaniels’ track record as a head coach isn’t good. He failed to last even two full seasons with the Denver Broncos.
McDaniels is looking forward to his second chance.
“I’m competitive. In everything that I do and I’m involved in, I want to compete to try to be the best we can be,” he said last week following the official announcement of his hiring.
“I think our team will show that day in and day out. I think ... the best way for us to reach our potential is to compete in every aspect of our organization.”
Whether this hire turns into something good for the long term for the Raiders remains to be seen. Davis certainly had options and during the team’s search for a new coach McDaniels barely registered in a non-scientific readers poll by The Bee.
Fans were hoping first for University of Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh (31%). Then-interim coach Rich Bisaccia (27%) was another of the fans’ top choices. McDaniels polled at about 8%.
Davis perhaps chose to focus on the success McDaniels had in New England as an offensive coordinator, hoping that carries over to the Raiders.
The Raiders also hired former Patriots director of player personnel Dave Ziegler to replace Mike Mayock as GM and Champ Kelly to be the assistant general manager.
“I believe there’s a great culture in this organization right now, which is what they will find,” Raiders owner Mark Davis said. “They haven’t seen that as much yet because they haven’t seen all the players together, but that’s something that Rich had built over the last six months, is a fantastic culture in this building.
“I think that now we’re just moving to the next level. It’s not a rebuild. It’s not a reload. It’s just taking this to the next level and getting to that Super Bowl and winning some championships.”
The Raiders finished the 2021 season with a 10-7 record, securing a playoff berth for the first time since 2016 as the players rallied behind Bisaccia after he took over following the resignation of Jon Gruden in an email scandal..
The 2021 Raiders improved on defense, led by Maxx Crosby, who Sunday played in his first Pro Bowl, joining teammates Denzel Perryman, Hunter Renfrow and A.J. Cole in the annual all-star game.
Former Raiders defensive coordinator Gus Bradley shaped a defense that finished 14th in the NFL in total yards allowed per game (337.2), 13th in pass defense (222.9 yards per game) and 19th against the run (114.3).
Bradley is now the Indianapolis Colts’ defensive coordinator.
McDaniels retained wide receivers coach Edgar Bennett and is bringing in Patrick Graham as the defensive coordinator after two seasons with the New York Giants. He joins new quarterbacks coach Bo Hardegree from the Patriots.
The Raiders will continue to interview for an offensive coordinator.
That means the 2022 Raiders will have to learn a new scheme.
Quarterback Derek Carr will start all over ... again, under yet another new coordinator — assuming Ziegler and McDaniels keep Carr, which appears likely (he has one more year left on his contract).
Carr has gone through several head coaches and offensive coordinators in his eight NFL seasons since he was drafted out of Fresno State. More on Carr’s future soon.
McDaniels’ stint in Denver
McDaniels received his first head coaching opportunity with the Broncos in 2009, replacing Mike Shanahan.
His reign didn’t last long. He was fired in 2010 after a 3-9 start, finishing his stint with the Broncos at 11-17.
After his firing, he landed a job as a quarterback/offensive coordinator with the St. Louis Rams in 2011 before returning to the Patriots and helping the team to three more Super Bowl titles.
McDaniels might’ve learned from his time with the Broncos (lowlights included trading Jay Cutler after a 6-0 start in 2009 and being fined $50,000 for not reporting a videotaping of a San Francisco 49ers walkthough. It was later learned he did not know about the taping).
At one point, in 2018, McDaniels also accepted a head coaching job with the Indianapolis Colts only to withdraw his name and remain with the Patriots.
“The last 10 to 12 years I’ve really had an opportunity to grow as a person, as a coach, as a man, and try to figure out after my experiences in Denver and St. Louis who I am, how I wanted to be defined in my career, what I wanted to represent, and how I would lead the next time if I got another opportunity to be a head coach.” McDaniels said after joining the Raiders.
“It’s crystallized for me. I’m clear in the vision that I have for this role, for this job, for this team, and I’m going to be myself.”
Will he bring success to the Raiders?
Everyone deserves a second chance.
After all he went through with Denver, McDaniels and the Patriots’ offense, led by Tom Brady, continued to thrive.
McDaniels even helped rookie quarterback Mac Jones have a decent season in 2021, when he passed for 3,801 yards and 22 touchdowns against 13 touchdowns.
The Patriots ranked 15th in total offense (353.4) this season, not too far from where the Raiders finished in 11th (363.8). The run game finished eighth (126.5). A lot better than where the Raiders placed (28th).
There is plenty of hope for the Raiders to trend upward with the McDaniels’ hire.
Las Vegas has plenty of key pieces to build on (Carr, Renfrow, Darren Waller and Josh Jacobs among them), and they can add to that in free agency.
McDaniels is just 45 but carries a lot of knowledge. He is capable of succeeding in Las Vegas with the talent he has there, repeating the highs he reached with the New England offense in past years.
Will McDaniels deliver for the Raiders? The road to the answer lies ahead.
This story was originally published February 7, 2022 at 9:00 AM.
