Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels, proprietor Mark Davis and basic supervisor Dave Ziegler at McDaniels’ and Ziegler’s introductory press convention Jan. 31, 2022. (Matt Aguirre/Las Vegas Raiders)
Mark Davis stated it was a fumble and Josh McDaniels agreed.
The 2 made positive to get that message out of the best way early on the introductory press convention for the Raiders’ new head coach together with basic supervisor Dave Ziegler.
So with the “Tuck Rule” as a backdrop with its 20-year anniversary and a brand new ESPN “30 for 30” manufacturing, it’s no less than a bit ironic that the Raiders have gone all-in on the Patriot Method.
If having administration, personnel, participant improvement and the teaching employees working collectively in an interlocking system counts for something, the Raiders would possibly lastly be on to one thing sustainable.
This was no fumble.
Coaches from the Invoice Belichick tree haven’t precisely overwhelmed, however it positive appears to be like like Davis has seen the error (or errors) of his methods in bringing in McDaniels and Ziegler.
McDaniels employed Patrick Graham away from the New York Giants to be his defensive coordinator. Graham is also steeped in New England’s approach of doing issues, having labored there as an assistant from 2009 by 2015.
The offensive play-caller is a Patriot. The defensive play-caller is a Patriot. The overall supervisor is a Patriot.
Whereas the Patriots have lengthy been a group Raider Nation has come to hate, it seems Davis has lengthy forged an admiring look at their approach of doing issues.
“I’ve simply at all times seen the Patriots as a group that not solely adapts from week to week or half to half, however perhaps even sequence to sequence,” Davis stated. “I simply imagine in Josh’s means to evaluate a state of affairs and make the modifications in real-time, and that’s at all times been one thing that’s impressed me.”
However the true change from Davis got here within the method to convey concord to a corporation that has by no means recognized it since he assumed management of the Raiders upon his father Al Davis’ dying greater than 11 years in the past. 
There wasn’t a day throughout that point when all phases of the Raiders had been in live performance, and we’re not simply speaking about offense, protection and particular groups. Their course of wasn’t ever thorough or exact when it got here to creating the hires concerned in team-building.
As an alternative, it was Davis reacting in a approach that by no means allowed a really united effort.
First, Davis employed Reggie McKenzie as basic supervisor with out contemplating one other candidate. Then he let McKenzie rent the coach, so long as it wasn’t Hue Jackson, who had promised to make modifications following the 2011 season that had been by no means his to make.
McKenzie employed Allen. Davis wasn’t a fan and infrequently spoke to him. McKenzie stripped the roster of unhealthy contracts and repaired the wage cap from harm performed by Al Davis. The Raiders had little expertise, and Allen made his share of errors.
4 video games into the 2014 season, Allen was gone after a listless loss in London. McKenzie stated it was his name, which it most definitely was after Davis advised him Allen needed to go.
McKenzie was keen on interim coach Tony Sparano because the successor, however Davis met personally with Jack Del Rio and made the rent. It wasn’t as if McKenzie had a selection.
There was a quick upsurge in play and even a 12-win season in 2016. It fell aside in 2017, and Del Rio felt he wanted extra management of the roster.
As an alternative, Davis lastly talked Jon Gruden into popping out of the published sales space, giving him the keys to the soon-to-be Las Vegas kingdom. The hope was McKenzie can be the steadying gradual hand to counterbalance Gruden’s extra impulsive nature.
That didn’t work both. McKenzie didn’t final the 2018 season. Gruden’s hand-picked successor was Mike Mayock, the NFL Community analyst. The Raiders made incremental enhancements, going from 4-12 in Gruden’s scorched roster first season after which 7-9 and 8-8.
Below Gruden, there have been no checks and balances, and he and Mayock misfired on some key early picks.
Then got here 2021, with the revelation of Gruden’s mysogynistic and racist emails which he believed had been personal. Gruden resigned below strain, and the Raiders had been, in Davis’ phrases, “rocked to the core.”
The dying of an harmless motorist which was allegedly hit by vast receiver Henry Ruggs III was subsequent. But below interim coach Wealthy Bisaccia, the Raiders in some way received their final 4 video games to get to 10-7 and make the playoffs.
Davis made the exhausting selection to maneuver on, and this time the search was thorough and exhaustive — the primary time in his possession there wasn’t some form of knee-jerk response.
“I felt on this time, we had been going to do it a bit bit in a different way and attempt to discover a teammate,” Davis stated of the coach-GM combo.
So Davis employed Ziegler, after which McDaniels — with Ziegler having the ultimate say on issues of the roster and personnel. However they had been at all times a package deal deal.
Davis obtained a brand new stadium in Las Vegas when few thought he may pull it off, which offers the group with a sound financial base it by no means had in Oakland.
Whereas the Gruden rent turned out to be an exploding cigar, it positive appears to be like as if Davis has discovered from his errors in placing collectively the 2022 Raiders.
Having lined the Raiders for 26 years and adopted them this yr and seen solely 5 groups with data above .500, I’ve been conditioned to not be overly optimistic.
I’m unsure how good Ziegler and McDaniels will likely be, however I like the concept of a unified operation with the identical imaginative and prescient in terms of roster choice, improvement and team-building.
This might work.