The Las Vegas Raiders have underachieved all season, currently sitting at 2-7 and reeling, and the call for head coach Josh McDaniels’ job has gotten louder by the week. Things came to a head on Sunday when the team lost a home game to an Indianapolis Colts team with a first-time NFL coach in Jeff Saturday.
Jeff Saturday Won His First NFL Game, But Critics Of His Head Coaching Hire Remain Vocal
The loss is just the latest in a string of underachieving losses this season, which include three blown leads of at least 17 points. That distinction ties them with the 2003 Falcons and 2020 Chargers as the only teams to do so. In fact, the Raiders went 106-3 in such games from 1984-2021.
But that hasn’t changed how team owner Mark Davis feels about his coach. In an interview with the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Davis was complimentary of his coach.
“As far as Josh goes, I have no issues. I’m getting to know him a lot better. When you sign someone to a contract, don’t you expect him to fulfill the contract? “
“I like Josh,” Davis continued. “I think he’s doing a fantastic job. That’s why I hired him. We did an exhaustive search and found the person we believe is going to bring the Raiders to greatness.”
Mark Davis: Josh McDaniels is "doing a fantastic job." https://t.co/FN3aOltziQ
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) November 14, 2022
The dreaded “vote of confidence,” is usually a death sentence as pertains to a coach being relieved of his duties. Especially a coach that’s projected to compete in year one of his tenure but is falling miserably short with no answers in sight.
Star Players Are Also Searching For Answers
When the Raiders added wide receiver Davante Adams on offense and pass rusher Chandler Jones on defense the belief was Las Vegas would compete for an AFC West title. That hasn’t come to fruition, and Adams expressed his frustration following Sunday’s loss.
You just love to see it @tae15adams‼️🥲
📺: CBS pic.twitter.com/WpC5ih7Jtt
— Las Vegas Raiders (@Raiders) November 13, 2022
“Just don’t have enough guys that are fully bought in. I don’t think people are like, you know, F what McDaniels is talking about, or I’m going against the grain. It’s just a matter of executing when it’s time. … It means playing a complete game, every minute of the game, giving it everything you’ve got. … It’s doing your job and making the plays when you’re called on and get the opportunities, and we just don’t do that at a high enough level right now.”
Adams’ college teammate at Fresno State, quarterback Derek Carr, even cried out of frustration in his postgame presser, which is a terrible sign of desperation.
Powerful words from QB1 tonight. pic.twitter.com/JZtTJmU96Z
— Las Vegas Raiders (@Raiders) November 14, 2022
Raiders Should’ve Hired Rich Bisaccia Permanently
Vegas dropped the ball when they didn’t make Rich Bisaccia the permanent head coach. He migrated that team through the Jon Gruden, Henry Ruggs and Damon Arnette fiascos.
Led them to the playoffs and within 7 yards of upsetting the eventual AFC champion Bengals on the road. Before that game, Bisaccia wrote each player a handwritten note thanking them for playing through adversity and for him.
And owner Mark Davis didn’t think he could lead them. They played hard for him and trusted him. He didn’t have a flashy enough name to lead the team into the Las Vegas era. Now they’re stuck with a guy who started his head coaching career in Denver going 6-0 and has since gone 7-24 since when holding the lead chair.
