The Las Vegas Raiders have fired head coach Josh McDaniels and general manager Dave Ziegler following the team’s 3-5 start.
Raiders linebacker coach Antonio Pierce, a former New York Giants star, will reportedly take over the team on an interim basis, according to ESPN.
‘After much thought about what the Raiders need to move forward, I have decided to part ways with Josh and Dave,’ owner Mark Davis said in a statement. ‘I want to thank them both for their hard work and wish them and their families nothing but the best.’
Locker room morale appeared to be at an all-time low with the Raiders following Monday’s loss to the Lions in Detroit. When asked how to improve the offense, running back Josh Jacobs said: ‘I don’t know, it ain’t my job.’
And now, it’s not McDaniels’ job, either.
The Las Vegas Raiders have reportedly fired head coach Josh McDaniels
Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo (10) grimaces in pain after getting sacked
General manager Dave Ziegler was also let go by Las Vegas Raiders owner Mark Davis
In two seasons with the Raiders, McDaniels went just 9-16.
And McDaniels didn’t win with Denver in his first go-round as a head coach, either, going just 11-17 in two seasons.
McDaniels was previously viewed as one of the brighter offensive minds in the game with his many years working with Tom Brady on the Patriots and his work this season helping to develop rookie Mac Jones.
But his first experience as head coach fell apart quickly in Denver following a 6-0 start in 2009. Denver finished 8-8 that season and McDaniels was fired with a 3-9 record in 2010, losing 17 of his final 22 games as coach.
McDaniels was also fined $50,000 by the NFL for not reporting that the team’s director of video operations videotaped a San Francisco 49ers walkthrough practice before the teams played a game in 2010 in London. The investigation determined that McDaniels did not know about the taping in advance and declined to view it but he was punished for not immediately reporting the infraction to the league.
Both Ziegler (right) and McDaniels were fired
While several former assistants to Bill Belichick in New England have gotten head coaching jobs, the success rate of those coaches isn’t high.
The seven coaches — McDaniels, Romeo Crennel, Eric Mangini, Bill O’Brien, Matt Patricia, Brian Flores and Joe Judge — have combined for a .410 winning percentage and five playoff berths in 27 seasons they began as head coach. O’Brien had four of those playoff seasons in Houston with Mangini having the other with the Jets.
Beyond the losses, McDaniels has made a series of decisions that have backfired, particularly after starting quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo was lost to a back injury two weeks ago.
McDaniel decided to go with Brian Hoyer, a quarterback who hasn’t won a game as a starter in seven years, over rookie Aidan O’Connell. As a result, Hoyer racked up a dismal 37.1 quarterback rating, and the Raiders still don’t know more about O’Connell and whether he has a real future.
Garoppolo returned on Monday night, but Las Vegas still lost nonetheless.
As the Raiders at 3-5 watch another season likely slip away, their two best players – and two of the best at their positions in the NFL – are watching their peak years slide right along out of sight.
Raiders owner Mark Davis is once again looking for a new coach in Las Vegas
Davante Adams and Maxx Crosby could have been key pieces for a championship contender elsewhere, but are instead stuck in Las Vegas with a Raiders team that will likely miss the playoffs for the 19th time in 21 years.
Both remained on the roster Tuesday after the league’s trade deadline.
Adams has voiced his displeasure since the offseason but he has been careful not to blame the coaches.
He had potential touchdowns wiped out in Monday night’s 26-14 loss to the Detroit Lions on errant passes Garoppolo. One was underthrown in the end zone and the other two were overthrows after Adams got wide open.
After the last overthrow in which Adams used a brilliant move to get open, he went to the sideline, slammed his helmet and said a few choice words.
Adams didn’t have such frustration in his eight seasons in Green Bay catching passes from Aaron Rodgers as he developed into one of the NFL’s top receivers. He also was outstanding in his first season in Las Vegas with 100 receptions for 1,516 yards and 14 touchdowns, but this season the subpar quarterback play by Garoppolo and backups Brian Hoyer and Aidan O’Connell has often made Adams irrelevant in games.
Adams, who turns 31 on Christmas Eve, has only one 100-yard game this season, a 13-catch, 172-yard performance in Week 3 against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Adams voiced his displeasure since the offseason but has been careful not to blame coaches
Crosby, whose motor never stops running, has spent his entire five-year career with the Raiders. He often has been dominant and against the Lions forced and recovered a fumble and had a tackle for loss.
The Raiders defense has improved this season and kept the offense in the game, but Las Vegas has scored at least 20 points just once in their past nine games.
Crosby, 26, has made no secret he’s sick of the losing and aches to play in late-season games that matter. He did that two years ago when the Raiders made the playoffs, but that was the only time.
‘We’ve just got to play better,’ Crosby said. ‘As a team, we’re not playing good enough right now.’
