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With the news that Bill Belichick is leaving the New England Patriots, there are now a total of eight head coaching openings in the NFL. The Las Vegas Raiders were the first team to have an opening but they now face a lot of competition.
Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel wasn’t expected to get fired this offseason but the team decided to make a change. Though Tom Brady’s ownership stake in the Raiders hasn’t been approved yet, he’s still closely connected to the team and owner Mark Davis.
Brady and Vrabel are close due to their years together with the Patriots. That could play a factor in the Raiders’ head coaching search. Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer was asked who he thought the team’s head coach and general manager would be next season and he predicted Vrabel to go to Las Vegas with former Titans vice president of player personnel Ryan Cowden coming along as general manager.
“Maino, a little hunch here: Vrabel and Cowden,” Breer wrote in a January 10 mailbag. “I think the Raiders take a swing at [Jim] Harbaugh. And I think if they can’t land a big fish like Vrabel, Harbaugh or [Bill] Belichick, then they probably stick with Antonio Pierce.”
Cowden is currently an executive advisor to the general manager of the New York Giants and could be in line for a general manager job of his own. According to Breer, Vrabel and Cowden were close when they were both in Tennessee.
Why Mike Vrabel?
Other than the Tom Brady factor, it’s difficult to see why Mike Vrabel would be the choice for the Raiders. He was very successful as a head coach with the Titans and was named the NFL’s Coach of the Year in 2021. He accumulated a 54-45 record as a head coach in six seasons, including two playoff wins.
While Vrabel is a proven winner, his background is similar to Antonio Pierce’s. Vrabel was a longtime linebacker in the NFL and Super Bowl champion. He decided to get his coaching start at the college level before becoming a linebackers coach in the NFL. That’s almost the exact same trajectory that Pierce has had.
The only difference is that Vrabel had a season as a defensive coordinator before getting a head coaching job. What makes both Vrabel and Pierce appealing is their ability to connect with players. Vrabel has a longer and better track record as a head coach but it’s hard to look at Pierce and not simply see him as a cheaper version of Vrabel who is already in the Raiders building.
Las Vegas Raiders Are Big Fans of Ed Dodds
The longer the Raiders go without interviewing head coaching candidates, the more it appears that owner Mark Davis is going to hire a general manager and let him make the choice. The Raiders have already requested an interview with Indianapolis Colts assistant general manager Ed Dodds and according to Albert Breer, the team was close to hiring him in 2022.
“No, Ryan, they loved Ed Dodds two years ago when they interviewed him for their GM job, and so he’s in a strong position going into his interview there, regardless of what happens with the coach,” Breer wrote. “But that he has the connection to [Jim] Harbaugh doesn’t hurt.”
If Dodds becomes the general manager, there’s a good chance the team will pursue Michigan’s Jim Harbaugh.
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