The Las Vegas Raiders hired head coach Josh McDaniels in 2022 hoping he could build upon the team’s playoff appearance and help quarterback Derek Carr improve. A year later, Las Vegas is coming off a 6-11 season and Carr is set to play for the New Orleans Saints.
McDaniels’ tenure with the Raiders immediately got off to a rough start. The team lost its first three games, but each of them was decided by one score. Many thought a turnaround was imminent after the Raiders won two of their next three contests.
However, Las Vegas lost three consecutive games again and entered late November with a 2-7 record. While it briefly rebounded, improving to 5-7, a 1-4 finish to close out the regular season prevented the Raiders from making the playoffs.
Las Vegas’s placement in the NFL standings last season led many to believe McDaniels would be among those on the NFL coaching hot seat in 2023. However, it appears the Raiders’ head coach is in no danger of losing his job.
In a Raiders’ mailbag for The Athletic, Vic Tafur expressed his belief that Las Vegas wouldn’t fire McDaniels or general manager Dave Ziegler even if the team went 4-13 this season.
- Josh McDaniels coaching record: 17-28 in career
“My opinion hasn’t changed. This year’s record doesn’t matter, and McDaniels and general manager Dave Ziegler are counting on Davis’ newfound patience to build the roster up the right way. That means drafting well, something the last two regimes did not do.”
Vic Tafur on whether or not the Las Vegas Raiders would fire Josh McDaniels, Davie Ziegler after another losing season
The Raiders’ reporter isn’t alone in that thinking. Previously, an NFL insider shared that he doesn’t think Las Vegas will fire McDaniels ‘no matter how the team performs‘ in 2023.
Notably, Tafur also wrote that Jimmy Garoppolo isn’t necessarily McDaniels’ guy. Tom Brady was who Las Vegas wanted and once he retired then the Carolina Panthers traded up for Bryce Young, Garoppolo became the third option and most viable short-term solution.
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It’s been made fairly clear that McDaniels will be with Las Vegas for at least two more seasons. Even if the Raiders finish with a top-10 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, ownership will view that as an opportunity to draft the quarterback McDaniels wants.
McDaniels’ job security is rare for a head coach who went 11-17 in his first stint with the Denver Broncos and has largely failed to achieve success as an offensive coordinator outside of his time with the New England Patriots. However, owner Mark Davis’s desire to recreate “The Patriot Way” will seemingly allow McDaniels to stick around for at least two more years.
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