So far, Las Vegas Raiders fans have experienced all sorts of emotions when it comes to their team. From the Derek Carr debacle to the Darren Waller trade, this offseason has really been something. Essentially, general manager Dave Ziegler and Co. are starting over, literally. There’ll only be a handful of players left from the Jon Gruden/Mike Mayock era by the time the 2023 NFL season kicks off. Reactionary fans aside, either his regime is genius or people have the right to be concerned about this team’s future.
Despite all the hoopla about Aaron Rodgers, it’s quite evident that Jimmy Garoppolo really was “the guy” all along. Which, no surprise, was to the chagrin of Raiders fans. Ziegler’s picking up a batch of former New England Patriots in Jakobi Meyers and Phillip Dorsett also didn’t seem to help matters. Clearly, there’s a theme here of getting players with whom head coach Josh McDaniels has previously coached. Whether it’s because they’ve been successful in McDaniels’ system or because they are “culture fits,” it’s not hard to dissect what’s taking place in the desert.
What about the Raiders’ defense?
As the offseason got underway, fans were likely shocked at the focus on acquiring weapons for the offense. Once Josh Jacobs received the franchise tag, the dominos began to slowly fall. However, as new wide receivers and tight ends were being added, people were left wondering, “Well, what about the defense?” It’s a fair question. Still, the notion that you need a “sexy” name to build a defense is shortsighted. Sure, David Long and Duke Shelley aren’t household names, but that doesn’t mean Ziegler doesn’t know what he’s doing.
The duo might not be Jalen Ramsey, but again, it takes more than just one All-Pro to rebuild one of the worst defenses in the NFL. As our own Alex Monfreda pointed out recently, the numbers suggest that Dave Ziegler and the Raiders just picked up two potential starting corners. All while Raider Nation sulked at the Waller trade. That was a move in which the team moved on from an injury-prone player who’s probably slipping into decline. A harsh reality, but a reality, nonetheless.
Looking at it objectively…
It’s easy to sit there and propose that this team is in worse shape than last year. However, the notion that Ziegler and Co. tore down a “playoff roster” is ludicrous. The Raiders had a stroke of luck and sneaked into the postseason under Rich Bisaccia; other than that, there’s no concrete evidence that the roster would’ve had sustained success. For all intents and purposes, this current regime tried to do it with those players. They even added an All-Pro in Davante Adams. Still, they couldn’t get it done. Whether you want to blame Carr or whomever, a partial reset was needed.
Going the route of “spending big” in free agency hasn’t yielded meaningful results this past generation. All of the Raiders’ regimes at one point or another went that route. We’re talking Reggie McKenzie, Mike Mayock, and even the late Al Davis. Look, Raiders fans hate the “Patriot Way.” We get it. However, rebuilding a roster primarily through the draft is more viable in the long run. Now, there’s a caveat. Going into Year 2, Dave Ziegler and Josh McDaniels are taking a massive risk in taking this approach; however, any team that’s built for long-term success starts out this way. Maybe it isn’t so much that this brain trust is having a “miserable” offseason; rather, it could be that Raiders fans just don’t comprehend how a winner is built. Just a thought.
*Top Photo: Getty Images
Your last post about McD/DZ was, well, laughable and equally insulting.. Maybe we “don’t know how a roster is constructed. Yeah, we have never seen it in other franchises, like the Jags, Jets, and Lions. Three of the worst teams before last season, all with a big turn around. What is the excuse next year, not enough time, still don;t have the right guys, or maybe the sun got in their eyes? 50 year fan, first year i have no hope, and no i don;t hope that is the case that they will lose again, but every move they make this off season is pointing that direction. Most of their signings have been guys who have never performed at an elite level and at best are subs and specil team players. This guy will not last last past the sixth game of the season..
Agree with GDP12345. McD/DZ have not shown the ability to build a team. They let quality leave and sign average, last year and this year. They got a third round draft choice for both Carr and Waller (both on long term contracts) which is not “the Patriot way”. The theory that they are so smart and sophisticated that only a football genius can truly understand all their great moves is ridiculous. We can all hope that we are wrong but that probability gets less and less with everything they do. The highest probability is Davis can’t afford to let them go and this is a repeat of McDaniel in Denver.
The worse part of this teardown is coaching more then players. The team had gelled around the coaches and players to form a team and work with what they had. Not try and tell them this is the way it will be done. You fine tune what you have not force complete new system on them.
The only thing that is “ludicrous” is if somebody actually got paid to write this nonsense. Whoever kit was shouldn’t have gotten paid, should’ve gotten drug tested ???
They did tear down a playoff team because the team they took over went to the playoffs. Lucky? That team was so lucky last year. SB teams are made out of the luck they had with leaked email hit job on the coach early season and starting wr killing somebody. CB flashing guns running around on coke. Luck like that is dynasty fuel!? Dave and Josh should have been honest about rebuilding and did it year one. Tape is out on every single guy they kept. I was upset they gave Carr another contract but when they did, every media outlet said there was an out, YEAR TWO, not year one like those same outlets claim now. My issue with getting Jimmy G, we’re not tanking to get a high end qb in the draft and we’re not grabbing a guy that gets us past 8 wins. Setting up for another 10 years of middle play and middle draft picks. Not winning SB without a qb that can ball. We now have an injury prone qb with a weak arm by NFL standards and no defense or offensive line to mask the lacking qb. It looks like Dave and Josh messed up right off the bat and they are too stubborn/embarrassed to admit it. Smart move would be to trade away Devante, Jacobs and Crosby and do a true rebuild with “their guys”. I would respect and support that. What they look to be doing instead is that bs retool and win now lie they tried to sell us last year and that is wasting everyone’s time. I feel like egos will be the downfall of Josh and Dave. Admit you were wrong about this team and blow it up properly. Best of luck to them, I’ll check on it in December
What kinda RAIDERS fans are any of you responding!? Carr is quite possibly the worse quarterback in the league, Waller is good but not the best most importantly never available. Just stealing $$ that can be allocated else where. Y’all Krazy! Are Y’all RAIDERS fans or player’s fans? I’m a RAIDERS FAN!! Win,lose draw! Definitely not gonna bad-mouth before checking em’ out. Nobody is a big name until they make themselves big names. Who would you prefer they signed? Give the youngsters a chance,can’t be any worse than what we’ve been putting out there.So looking forward to the Draft!
Well said, Dre! I agree with you.