Las Vegas Raiders fans will likely remember the era of Josh McDaniels and Dave Ziegler with a scowl. The so-called attempt to build “Patriots West” failed miserably. Their anemic offense was so bad that owner Mark Davis had seen enough. Still, the presence of former Patriots hasn’t exactly been fully expelled, as in the case of Tom Brady.
Throughout this past season, Brady has appeared to be an influential presence at the side of Davis. The question is, just how much of an influence and role does Brady have right now? Let’s face it, with news focusing on Antonio Pierce and Jim Harbaugh, it’s easy to overlook Brady’s ubiquity. It’s even more interesting when you start connecting some of the dots that are in front of us. Harbaugh, presently the Michigan football head coach, has a connection to Brady, as the quarterback was once a Wolverine himself.
Whether Brady really believes Harbaugh is “the guy” is the million-dollar question.
Tom Brady isn’t going anywhere, Raiders fans.
When it comes to making big decisions, Mark Davis has often relied on others for guidance. Davis has openly acknowledged that he is not his late father, Al Davis. Take McDaniels’ hiring, for example. Ken Herock, a former Raiders player who’s now in his 80s, was a key voice in Davis’s decision to hire McDaniels. As we’ve seen, this approach by Davis didn’t pan out. To be fair, though, none of the coaching hires made by Davis have come close to success. Only Rich Bisaccia and Jack Del Rio have led the Raiders to the playoffs since 2011.
What does this mean for Brady? Well, it wouldn’t be far-fetched to think that his opinion would play a role. As recently as this week, Brady was at practice for the Raiders in Henderson. As Sports Illustrated’s Hondo Carpenter points out, Brady will eventually be a partial owner, so Raiders fans, like it or not, will need to get accustomed to seeing him around.
The “Patriot Way” may still be alive.
*Top Photo: Getty Images
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