The Raiders fired coach Josh McDaniels late Tuesday night, roughly 24 hours after the team played terribly in a 26–14 loss to the Lions.
McDaniels didn’t even last two seasons as the head coach, compiling a 9–16 record on the Las Vegas sideline. He didn’t finish two seasons as Broncos coach either, going 11–17. And he never even started with the Colts after initially accepting that job.
That lack of success led many to question why the Raiders hired McDaniels in the first place. The choice was even more puzzling considering that the team was winning with interim coach Rich Bisaccia, promoted from assistant head coach and special teams coordinator after Jon Gruden resigned.
Gary A. Vasquez/USA Today network
Bisaccia went 7–5 as Las Vegas’s coach, leading the team to a playoff berth. The Raiders lost to the Bengals (the eventual AFC champions), 26–19, in the wild-card round. But Bisaccia was just the second interim coach to take a team to the playoffs, joining Bruce Arians. And it was only the Raiders’ second playoff berth since 2002.
Despite players and coaches supporting Bisaccia getting the permanent job, Davis either wanted a clean break from Gruden’s staff or was dazzled by hiring a high-profile coach from Bill Belichick’s championship regime with the Patriots. Less than two seasons later, McDaniels is gone. That led many NFL fans and media to point out that the Raiders should’ve just kept Bisaccia. Here’s a sampling:
Mark Davis hired McDaniels and Ziegler when the entire locker room wanted to keep Rich Bisaccia.
— Ben Volin (@BenVolin) November 1, 2023
Davis let them tear down the roster and get rid of the QB, then fired them after 25 games when they didn’t get immediate results.
It always starts at the top.
Mark Davis should hire Rich Bisaccia as head coach and Mike Mayock as GM to try to right that wrong.
— Ross Tucker (@RossTuckerNFL) October 31, 2023
Karma.
Remember when the Raiders played really well down the stretch a few years ago under interim head coach Rich Bisaccia? Then instead of giving him the chance at the full-time gig, they let him walk for two failed seasons of Josh McDaniels. #RaiderNation https://t.co/2rMr23OYgS
— Mark Spillane (@MarkSpillane_) November 1, 2023
Bottom line, #Raiders owner. Mark Davis already had the right man in the building. Rich Bisaccia deserved the job, he earned the job but Davis hired McDaniels. Bring him back. pic.twitter.com/8vUvtj8p1Z
— Newy Scruggs (@newyscruggs) November 1, 2023
To think that the raiders did not make Rich Bisaccia their head coach and instead hired Josh McDaniels just to fire him two years later damn.. https://t.co/x6ykuAl0yV
— MarkoAnthony19 (@MAJIC4419) November 1, 2023
"One TERRIBLE decision after another!"@Espngreeny still can't believe the @Raiders ditched Rich Bisaccia for Josh McDaniels after the 2021 season. #Greeny #RaiderNation pic.twitter.com/Gv3FUfPFyc
— ESPN Radio (@ESPNRadio) October 31, 2023
Bisaccia is currently the special teams coordinator for the Packers. No other NFL team wanted to give him a head-coaching opportunity either. He likely didn’t want to see a fellow coach fired. But like many in the NFL world, Bisaccia might be thinking about what might have been.
