Ruben B. Hughes The Las Vegas Raiders have their new coach, Josh McDaniels.
A day after several reports that he was joining the team, the former New England Patriots offensive coordinator was introduced Monday at a Raiders press conference while donning a black suit and silver tie.
“It was going to take a special place for me to really go where I was”, McDaniels told reporters. “And I found this here in Las Vegas.”
McDaniels, who shocked the NFL in 2018 by taking the job from the Indianapolis Colts and then stepping back before getting on a plane to finalize the deal, is finally ready to be head coach again.
It had been a hot rumor for a week, and it got stronger when the Raiders hired Dave Ziegler from the Patriots to be their new general manager. ESPN and NFL Network reported that the Raiders picked McDaniels on Sunday and are working on a contract to make him their new head coach.
McDaniels hasn’t been an NFL head coach since 2010. Since then, he’s done a great job as the New England Patriots’ offensive coordinator, while flirting with many teams that had openings. head coach. He still came back to the Patriots, but something about the Raiders job must have appealed to him.
Josh McDaniels’ first head coaching job wasn’t good
McDaniels had a remarkable and unusual career.
He was the NFL’s hottest candidate more than a decade ago and landed the Denver Broncos head coaching job in 2009 at the age of 33. It didn’t go well.
McDaniels disabled the locker room by eliminating popular veterans in favor of anyone with Patriots ties, a common mistake among former Bill Belichick assistants. He kind of took over the front office soon after he was hired and his people decisions were bad. He drafted Tim Tebow in the first round, and it wasn’t even his most questionable move.
On the ground, it did not start terribly. The Broncos got off to a 6-0 start in McDaniels’ first season. McDaniels’ brash style seemed to work. Then the Broncos crumbled and finished 8-8. The following season, the Broncos were caught filming a San Francisco 49ers practice in London, a violation that cost the team and McDaniels a $50,000 fine. It was the beginning of the end for McDaniels in Denver, and he was fired in his second season there with a 3-9 record.
It took a long time for McDaniels to resurface as head coach, although he agreed to take the Colts job and then retired before flying to Indianapolis.
Still, he remained a popular candidate due to his work with the Patriots offense.
McDaniels takes on Raiders challenge
Many stories have been written over the years about how McDaniels learned from the Denver fiasco. The Raiders obviously believe he will be totally different at the helm of a team this time around.
The Raiders stopped making Rich Bisaccia the permanent head coach, even after Bisaccia recovered from a tough spot last season and led the Raiders to the playoffs. Many players have said they want Bisaccia back. Hopefully McDaniels’ improvement in player treatment is legit, as it will be tested right away.
The Raiders are coming out of a playoff spot, but it will be a challenge in an AFC West against Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs, and Justin Herbert and the Los Angeles Chargers. But McDaniels has been an excellent offensive coach throughout his career, including last season’s work with rookie quarterback Mac Jones. He will make the most of the Raiders’ offense.
The Patriot Way is coming to Las Vegas. When the failures of Belichick’s assistants are mentioned, McDaniels’ move to Denver is mentioned prominently. The Raiders hope he’ll be a very different coach this time around. Provided he signs the contract.
