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The Las Vegas Raiders hit a low point this season with the 24-0 loss to the New Orleans Saints. The team was supposed to be in the playoffs this year but got shut out by a team that was 2-5 heading into the matchup. Everybody knows the defense isn’t great but what was the most shocking was how inept the offense looked.
The Saints were giving up the second-most points per game in the NFL heading into the game and quarterback Derek Carr couldn’t even manage to take a snap in New Orleans territory before he got benched for Jarrett Stidham. The Raiders’ offense was supposed to be a juggernaut under offensive guru Josh McDaniels but that hasn’t been the case with the group being inconsistent week to week.
Many fans already want McDaniels to get fired. It’s difficult for him to get the benefit of the doubt considering he failed with the Denver Broncos. SiriusXM’s Adam Schein picked the Raiders to make the playoffs this year and he was in disbelief over how bad they looked in Week 8. He even said that they could be in line to try a big-name head coach in the offseason to replace McDaniels.
“That was absolutely the worst performance of any NFL team in 2022,” Schein said of the Raiders’ loss to the Saints on “Mad Dog Sports Radio.” “The Raiders should fold the franchise. Josh McDaniels might be one-and-done. … We can talk about the Sean Payton sweepstakes. I will officially include the Vegas Raiders.”
Would Mark Davis Actually Fire McDaniels After 1 Season?
The Raiders had one of the most appealing coaching openings this past offseason. The team made the playoffs and had several impact players already on the roster. They could’ve had their pick of most of the top head coaching candidates. After undergoing a thorough search, owner Mark Davis decided that McDaniels was the right choice.
The hope was that the longtime New England Patriots assistant could take a solid team and turn them great. Through seven games, the Raiders look much worse than they did last season and have some of the worst losses in franchise history. The team already blew the biggest lead in team history with the Week 2 loss to the Arizona Cardinals and now McDaniels is responsible for the first shutout loss since 2014. Davis has already come out and affirmed that McDaniels is the coach for years to come but he has a breaking point. If a big name like Payton shows interest in the job, perhaps Davis moves on from McDaniels to make it happen. That will largely depend on if the Raiders have more disastrous performances as they did against the Saints.
Would Payton Want Raiders Job?
If things go bad and the Raiders actually do fire McDaniels, they should have an appealing opening again. Davante Adams is still elite, Maxx Crosby is a superstar, Nate Hobbs is an emerging cornerback and Darren Waller is still a matchup nightmare despite the slow start to the season.
Payton left a great gig with the Saints so it’s hard to imagine he’ll want to go with a team that will have to undergo a total rebuild. Derek Carr’s skillset certainly fits in well with Payton if he wants to stick with the quarterback. The Raiders may also have a high draft pick if he’d want to draft a young quarterback. It would have to be a job that Payton would at least consider.
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