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Raiders Rumors: Patriots' Josh McDaniels No Longer Viewed as Favorite for HC Vacancy
January 26, 2022
It appears the momentum toward Josh McDaniels becoming the next head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders is grinding to a halt.
Vic Tafur of The Athletic reported the New England Patriots offensive coordinator was "calling coaches around the league about putting together a staff, but it appears something happened in the last 24 hours."
It remains unclear if there are concerns about power structure or salary, but McDaniels is apparently no longer the favorite.
According to Tafur, the momentum has stalled for more than just McDaniels. A duo of McDaniels as head coach and Dave Ziegler as general manager appeared somewhat likely at one time, but that is no longer the case for the Patriots director of player personnel either.
Las Vegas is in the market for a general manager after moving on from Mike Mayock, though there is at least somewhat more uncertainty at head coach since Rich Bisaccia performed so well in an interim role this past season after Jon Gruden resigned.
The Raiders went 7-5 under Bisaccia and won their final four regular-season games to get into the playoffs.
Multiple players have offered their support of Bisaccia, but the Raiders are seemingly moving forward in interview processes as they look to find their next head coach and general manager.
Ziegler stood out as a potential GM candidate considering he has been with the Patriots the past nine seasons and helped lead the team to eight playoff appearances and three Super Bowl titles. He has been involved in scouting and player personnel decisions and had an impact on the roster the team put together during that time.
McDaniels has some head coaching experience from when he went 11-17 with the Denver Broncos in 2009 and 2010, but he is best known for his two different stints as the Patriots offensive coordinator that's covered 13 seasons.
He has six total Super Bowl rings from his time in New England, three of which came when he was an offensive coordinator.
Alas, the Raiders may be headed in a different direction as they look to find the GM and coach combination to help them compete against the likes of the Kansas City Chiefs, Los Angeles Chargers and Denver Broncos in the AFC West for years to come.