If the NFL has had a weasel, it has been former New England Patriots coach Josh McDaniels.
As one of the hottest assistant coaches to be hired in the 2009 cycle, one of McDaniels’ first moves when getting to the Denver Broncos was to trade starting quarterback Jay Cutler. As the Broncos started 6-2, with McDaniels celebrating the whole way, Denver collapsed with a 2-6 record down the stretch to finish 8-8.
In 2010, McDaniels was fired midseason after leading Denver to a 3-9 start. One of the biggest factors was deploying a Spygate-like operation against the 1-6 San Francisco 49ers when the two teams were practicing in London ahead of their International Series match.
After McDaniels returned to New England following a one-season stint as the St. Louis Rams’ offensive coordinator in 2011, he helped the Patriots win two Super Bowls and appear in another by the end of the 2017 season.
In February 2018, McDaniels stood up the Indianapolis Colts, who were set to hire him as their coach to replace a fired Chuck Pagano. As late as December 2021, McDaniels even stated he had no regrets about how the situation played out.
The Las Vegas Raiders are taking that same chance on McDaniels, and Houston Texans general manager Nick Caserio believes it will pay off for the AFC West club.
“I think he’ll do a great job,” Caserio told “The Jim Rome Show” on Feb. 15. “I think Josh is one of the smartest coaches I’ve been around. He’s probably one of the best play-callers and offensive coordinators in the league over the last many years.
Caserio believes that McDaniels, who has been a longtime friend of his going back to their days at John Carroll University, has learned from his mistakes.
“I think Josh is very smart and he’s evolved through the years,” said Caserio. “I think he learned a lot about his experience. I think all of us when we think about where we were 10-15 years ago, we change a lot. He’s matured both emotionally, personally. So, I think he’ll do a great job. He’s very smart. He’s a student of the game.”
What the Raiders have done that neither the Broncos nor the Colts did was add someone from the Patriots’ front office to theirs in order to give McDaniels an ally in personnel evaluation. Las Vegas also hired former Patriots director of player personnel Dave Ziegler, who had been in New England since 2013 in various capacities and was with the Broncos from 2010-12.
Said Caserio: “[McDaniels] understands the overall big picture, and I think the relationship that he and Dave Ziegler have will manifest itself, and I think he’ll be able to put something pretty cool in place.”
The Raiders are doing their best to become “Patriots West,” and Caserio thinks this could be the realistic shot McDaniels has had to be successful.
“I think he’s going to do an awesome job and I have a lot of respect and admiration for Josh both personally and professionally and I’m always rooting for him,” Caserio said.
The opportunity with Las Vegas also provides McDaniels a chance to show that what happened in Denver and Indianapolis was a result of inexperience, and that the 45-year-old from Canton, Ohio, has taken advantage of why sports fans love pro football: for its stories of second chances and redemption.
