Getty Las Vegas Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels.
In recent days it became apparent that Josh McDaniels was turning into the favorite for the Las Vegas Raiders‘ head coach job with New England Patriots executive Dave Ziegler likely becoming the general manager. Fans have not been happy with the rumors but owner Mark Davis clearly isn’t concerned about how they feel. While fans were holding out hope that something would change, that won’t be the case.
According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, Tom Pelissero and Mike Garafolo, the Raiders are planning to hire Ziegler as general manager.
The #Raiders are expected to hire #Patriots de facto GM Dave Ziegler as their new GM, per, @MikeGarafolo and @TomPelissero. He was key in New England’s fast turnaround, now turns his attention to Las Vegas. The next step is slated to be the hire of Josh McDaniels as head coach.
Barring any contract issues, McDaniels is set to be the Raiders’ next head coach, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Raiders are expected to hire former Patriots’ OC Josh McDaniels as their head coach, per sources. Two sides still are finalizing the contract, but McDaniels is their man.
According to Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, the Raiders’ approach centered around finding the right pairing of a general manager and head coach instead of finding one and having them sort out the other. If Las Vegas was going to hire McDaniels, they wanted Ziegler to be the general manager.
The Raiders centered their approach to the coach/GM search on interviewing pairings. Ed Dodds connected to Jim Harbaugh. John Spytek connected to Todd Bowles. And Dave Ziegler connected to Josh McDaniels.
If they’re hiring Ziegler, likely means they already have a yes from Josh.
Like it or not, the Raiders have their general manager and head coach tandem.
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Raiders Fans Share Reactions to News
McDaniels has become a controversial figure in his career. He failed at his first head coaching job with the Denver Broncos. He went 11-17 and was fired before he finished his second season. In 2018, he was about to take the Indianapolis Colts’ head coaching job before deciding to back out after he already started hiring his staff.
While McDaniels has had success as an offensive coordinator in New England, many Raiders fans weren’t too excited about the decision to hire him.
@Raiders I have been a die hard Raiders fan since being born 50 yrs ago. The hiring of Josh McDaniels breaks 💔 I am a Raider fan that moved to Colorado at 7 that stood up to Bronco fans my whole life. I watch McDaniels ruin the Broncos & can’t believe the Raiders would take him
The @Raiders should’ve kept Bisaccia at the helm. I guess they forgot Josh McDaniels has an 11-17 record as a head coach. #RaidersNation
There are many fans who aren’t happy with the news but there are also a number of them who are willing to give him a shot.
Not sure how I feel about the #Patriots duo we’re hiring.. but hey, let’s see how it plays out.
Buckle up #RaiderNation
If there’s one person who can get the best out of Derek Carr, it’s Josh McDaniels!! The Raiders current offensive personnel is something McDaniels can work with.
There’s no method to figuring out who the best coaching hire is for most of us. All you can do is hope that the person in charge heard a definitive plan and identity that makes them feel good about how to move forward. No one knows today and won’t know for years
At the end of the day, the Raiders have made their decision, and fans just have to hope for the best.
Was This the Right Move for the Raiders?
At the beginning of the coaching search, it looked like Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh was the favorite to land the job. The Raiders didn’t end up showing interest in him and it appears that McDaniels was the favorite all along. The coach’s failures are well-noted but he does deserve credit for being a strong offensive mind.
Patriots head coach Bill Belichick mostly puts his focus on defense. McDaniels played a large role in the success the team has had on offense for over a decade. The Raiders had some big offensive issues this season, especially in the red zone. According to Jordan Schultz, a big focus was put on those issues during the discussions McDaniels had with the team.
Source says McDaniels’ plan to fix #Raiders’ red-zone woes is to deploy more of Josh Jacobs – whom he likes – while also relying on TEs and using more pre-snap motion. Believes LV was too predictable near the goal-line. Mark Davis very open to Dave Ziegler as well.
The Raiders have the perfect personnel to run McDaniels’ offense if they can fix the offensive line. It may not have been the popular pick but it’s not necessarily fair to hold the Broncos stint against the coach. That was a long time ago and he’s learned a lot over the years. A big concern is that Patriots assistants have not had success away from New England. The Raiders appear to believe that McDaniels can buck the trend. If Davis made the wrong decision, it’s going to set his franchise back in a major way.
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