Halloween often serves as a spooky evening, highlighted by horror movies, creative costumes, and droves of candy. For Raider Nation, nothing was scarier than the prospect of riding out the rest of 2023 with Josh McDaniels and Dave Ziegler at the helm. Luckily, like Michael Myers himself, Raiders owner Mark Davis moved like an assassin in the night.
A Halloween Miracle For Raider Nation
The news of McDaniels’ and Ziegler’s firings hit social media, and there was an overwhelming sense of relief and joy emanating from the Silver and Black fan base. At long last, the witch is dead. Only one-and-a-half seasons into a six-year deal, and mere hours after an uninspiring press conference, McDaniels got canned alongside his partner in crime, Ziegler.
It is uncertain exactly when the Raiders officially fired the current regime, but one NFL insider is shining a light on Tuesday’s events. Long-time reporter Josina Anderson shared a quote she heard from another team that was interested in making a trade with Vegas.
According to Anderson, the Raiders didn’t even answer the phone on speculative trade offers. When asked about the fallout from these firings, the anonymous team stated, “[That] explains why they ghosted us … Nobody responded yesterday.”
Will The Raiders Regret Not Making Any Moves Ahead Of The NFL Trade Deadline?
The assumption was that the front office was too busy getting fired to make trades. Or even more likely, Mark Davis shut down any idea of potential trades, knowing that his next general manager and head coach should be the ones making those decisions.
Elite players like Davante Adams and Maxx Crosby will serve as two of the primary reasons to take this Raiders job. Allowing McZieg’s to trade either one for pennies on the dollar would only further exacerbate the issues in Sin City.
Still, it begs the question: why was this move made right now? The easy answer is that McDaniels and Ziegler simply aren’t cut out to lead a group of men. Keeping either one around any longer would alienate those in the locker room more than they already are. Frankly, it had to happen to salvage the morale of the roster.
But firing both men now makes for loads of questions that we won’t find an answer to anytime soon. Who will be the next general manager? Or head coach? Or quarterback? These questions will need solidified answers in the offseason, but as of today, it is nice to know that Dave Ziegler, Josh McDaniels, and Jimmy Garoppolo are not the answers to those questions.
The Future In Vegas Is Murky, But At Least There Is A Future
Interim head coach Antonio Pierce will guide the Raiders through the remainder of the 2023 campaign. Champ Kelly assumes the general manager role, also with an interim title, as the duo aims to replicate what Rich Bisaccia’s bunch did in 2021 following the firing of Jon Gruden.
The future is still murky in Las Vegas. The rest of the regular season might be a headache, but let’s rejoice over the reality that we don’t have to listen to any more of Josh McDaniels’ schtick. Maybe now he will scurry back to Bill Belichick and quit trying to be something he’s not. Either way, it isn’t the Raiders problem anymore.
Hallelujah for that.
*Top Photo: Kyle Terada/USA TODAY Sports
The Raider nation was angry and Mark Davis listened, thanks to raider legends Tim Brown and Charles Woodson for speaking up publicly. They saw what we saw, a head coach must be a leader of men, Mcpatriot wasn’t. Pick a H/C who is fiery with a vision who will select coordinators who share his vision
By Tony Brucks
Now that we have the idiots removed along with a slacker QB lets focus on the positives and build on that.
We have a rookie QB with a cannon for an arm and is somewhat to mostly accurate. He does have some trouble with reading the coverages due to them disguising them. So you receivers help him by coming back for the ball when necessary. If he can get the necessary protection from his inept OL then he can launch some 20 plus yarders. I dont see that happening much so Aidan MUST learn to feel the rush and learn to escape it by running the opposite direction. That means throwing on the run Aidan and being able to throw it with some mustard on it and being accurate.
Nobody expects perfection here especially with the ineffective OL we have. Do your best and learn from the mistakes. Listen to the coaches and more importantly listen to your play makers on the field. They will let you know what to do and how to do it. I dont see our running game improving because of our inept OL so strengthen that throwing arm and be ready to run. Take charge in that huddle and be a leader but also listen to your play makers.
HALLELUJAH THE WICKED WITCH IS DEAD ON HALLOWEEN!! Now we can finally move on and start building this the right way.
Everything on offense will be better with Aiden as QB. He has no issue at all unleashing it deep at any time. This is gonna drop 2 high safeties and open up lanes for Jacob’s. Offensive line gonna appear much better as 8 in the box on the regular is over.