Getty Davante Adams with Josh McDaniels.
The Las Vegas Raiders have fully moved on from the Josh McDaniels era of the team. His tenure was short-lived and based on how players responded to Antonio Pierce taking over, it doesn’t seem like they miss McDaniels.
However, the idea that the team hated the former head coach appears to be overblown. Wide receiver Davante Adams was actually a big fan of McDaniels but knew that the team needed a change.
“Sometimes in order for the team … to realize and fulfill their full potential, you need somebody that they are willing to play for … and I love Josh McDaniels,” Adams said on the March 28 episode of “The Shop.” “Personally, I was an advocate for him the whole time. Obviously, there came a point where it was clear that change needed to be made similar to the Patriots’ situation. But I always backed him.”
It doesn’t appear that Adams was pounding the table for the Raiders to fire McDaniels. Regardless, the team is in a better position now under Pierce, and Adams noticed a change immediately once he took over.
“It was just different once we had made the change and A.P. was in there,” Adams said.
Pierce was able to do enough to get the full-time head coaching job this offseason and there are few remnants remaining from McDaniels’ tenure.
Josh McDaniels Is Still Without a Job
Josh McDaniels isn’t likely to get a head coaching job again anytime soon. He’s been fired before finishing a second season as a head coach twice in his career. His 20-33 record is very poor for a head coach.
However, he’s proven to be a good offensive coordinator and has six Super Bowl rings from his time with the New England Patriots. Despite that, he was not hired by a team this offseason. He could be holding out for the opportunity to join Bill Belichick on whichever team he joins but there doesn’t appear to be much interest in him around the NFL.
McDaniels hasn’t had any success outside of New England in his career and it’s fair to question if whether he can be fit in any other system.
Is Davante Adams Sticking With Las Vegas Raiders?
Davante Adams hasn’t given any indication that he’d like to move on from the Raiders yet. However, he continues to be the subject of trade rumors. Las Vegas went 8-9 last season and could be a good draft class away from being a playoff team.
There’s no reason to believe that Adams would play anywhere else in 2024. The only thing that could turn things sour is if the Raiders don’t draft a quarterback and he’s not a fan of Aidan O’Connell or Gardner Minshew as starting quarterbacks.
Adams is already 31 and will turn 32 during the season. He continues to play at a high level and would be a very good piece to have if the Raiders do add a rookie quarterback. His future beyond the 2024 season is a bit questionable considering his salary cap hit jumps up to $44.1 million in 2025 but he’ll almost certainly be a Raider through the 2024 season.