Once a Raider, always a Raider. Those are words Raiders owner Mark Davis seemingly lives by.
But does that mean he listens to former Raiders when it comes time to hire or, in a worst-case scenario, fire a coach?
If Davis listens to former Raiders lineman Warren Sapp, he’ll hear a strong opinion, one that says current coach Josh McDaniels is the “wrong” coach for Las Vegas. Sapp said that and more when he appeared on Amy Trask and Suzy Shuster’s podcast, “What The Football?”
“We got the wrong guy at the helm. We’re trying to implement something that is dead. The Patriot way is dead. Bill Belichick even knows it,” Sapp said. “The Patriot way is dead and Josh McDaniels is trying to recreate something that he doesn’t have the credentials for. He’s not Bill Belichick.”
McDaniels enjoyed success as the Patriots offensive coordinator, but much like current Patriots coach Bill Belichick, it appears McDaniels benefitted greatly from coaching Hall-of-Fame quarterback Tom Brady.
Sapp also touched on McDaniels’ tenure as Broncos coach, which ended before two full seasons.
“We watched him do this in Denver when he drafted Tim Tebow and ran the Broncos into the ground. He’s going to do the same thing in [Las Vegas],” said Sapp. “What did Maya Angelou say? ‘When someone shows you who they are the first time, believe them.’ Josh McDaniels is not a good football coach.”
After the Raiders flopped horribly in their loss to the Bears in Chicago, many NFL observers are wondering if McDaniels is a viable option as head coach for the Raiders or any team. Sapp made it clear where he stands on the subject.
Interestingly, podcast host Amy Trask is the former CEO of the Raiders, and she and Sapp shared memories of their time together in the silver and black. So it wasn’t all negativity from Sapp, and he clearly still has a passion for the Raiders.
As for McDaniels, Davis’ opinion is the most important, and it appears his chosen coach isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. Will McDaniels turn the Raiders’ season around, and turn his head coaching career around in the process? Only time will tell. Davis and everyone with a passion for the Raiders will be watching closely.
