Raiders Players Angered by Surprise Roster Cut of Beloved Teammate: Insider

Getty Las Vegas Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels.

This offseason, the Las Vegas Raiders have shown that they aren’t afraid to move on from fan-favorite players or players who are popular in the locker room. Former team captains Derek Carr, Darren Waller and Mack Hollins will all be playing for new teams in 2023. However, none of those decisions may have struck a nerve like a surprising long snapper transaction.

Trent Sieg didn’t a have huge role on the field as long snappers aren’t playing the majority of snaps but he was a beloved teammate. He formed a very strong relationship with punter A.J. Cole and kicker Daniel Carlson. They were considered a great special teams trio. Sieg wasn’t thought to be on the chopping block until the Raiders signed former Denver Broncos long snapper Jacob Bobenmoyer. Once that move happened, it was clear the team was moving on from Sieg. Though it shouldn’t have a major effect on the performance of the team next season, there were players who weren’t happy with the move, according to Vic Tafur of The Athletic.

“There was some surprise and anger among players when the Raiders signed former Broncos long snapper Jacob Bobenmoyer and released five-year veteran Trent Sieg, who is extremely close with wildly successful kicker Daniel Carlson and punter AJ Cole,” Tafur wrote.

Why Was Sieg Cut?

Long snappers don’t get much attention from fans but Sieg stood out due to his relationship with Carlson and Cole. They are two of the team’s best players and there should be efforts to keep them happy. Sieg was a solid player and didn’t make a ton of mistakes but he had a big thing working against him. He didn’t have a past relationship with special teams coach Tom McMahon, per Tafur.

“Simply put, the Raiders thought Bobenmoyer is better than Sieg and special teams coach Tom McMahon wanted his guy from his days in Denver,” Tafur wrote. “Those are pretty good reasons, and I think Carlson, Cole and the other surprised players will get over the heavy-handed move by the time the season rolls around. I will miss discussing mechanical engineering with Sieg in the locker room.”

Josh McDaniels Responds to Poor NFLPA Survey

Head coach Josh McDaniels didn’t get off to a great start with the Raiders. He replaced beloved interim head coach Rich Bisaccia and led the team to a 6-11 season in 2022. After the season, the NFL Players Association conducted a survey of 1,300 players. Out of all of the coaching staffs in the NFL, McDaniels’ received the lowest grade. He discussed the grade and how he’s going to try to be better in his second season.

“I heard it. I didn’t read the whole thing,” McDaniels said during media availability at the NFL Annual Meeting. “I’m aware of that. Obviously, you don’t like to hear those things. We have captain’s meetings every week and we’ll continue to talk to the leaders on our group. You never know exactly who said it and how it came across, and sometimes context is important. So, I’ll look into that and try to do whatever we can do. If there’s something that we don’t love, there’s always going to be certain things that are a give and take in terms of time and so on.

“We’ve looked at our entire process this offseason and we’re going to try to make every aspect of it better.”