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The direction the Raiders should take

Obviously with what has happened recently, the raiders need to switch gears. Keep the status quo until the season is over (at this time). This should be how Mark Davis handles the future of the franchise from the end of the season to the foreseeable future.

1. Keep Mike Mayock. With Jon Gruden gone, I do wonder how much of a pull Mike Mayock had in the draft room. There was a story about Mayock and Gruden that was I found interesting during the 2019 NFL draft. Raiders were getting ready to pick at 24 when the Eagles made a surprise move to trade up to 23. Gruden was literally pounding the table at that point saying "he wanted a running back" and made it clear he wanted Josh Jacobs. Mayock assured Gruden that the Eagles did not trade up to take Jacobs and he was right. Jacobs was their man at 24. While Gruden may have been right in that moment, how many times did Gruden pound the table for Damon Arnette? Henry Ruggs? Clelin Ferrell? How much did Paul Guenther's say in drafting certain defensive players weigh into the equation? Mayock might have said, "hey let's go for this linebacker instead of this cornerback from Ohio State." But with Gruden (the 10 year $100 million coach) pounding the table and Guenther talking in his ear, how much of those reaches would have been avoided? It is a fair question for sure. It is obvious at which point Gruden became bored with the draft because when Mayock was most likely given full authority to get what he wanted, look the steals he has come up with in the 4th round or later. Mayock can find talent, he is important.

2. Hire the right coach. Easier said than done. With that being said (no pun intended), here are my top 3 choices for the next head coach (in no particular order).

a). Doug Pederson. The last few games of his coaching stint in Philly were bad. Like really bad. However, the hot rumor out there was Pederson was not a fan of Carson Wentz and was mad that he was forced to play him over Nick Foles. He was also mad when they let Foles walk. It appeared he threw a fit the last game of the season and tanked that game. Could be a red flag OR he could have seen something in Wentz and was right about him. The most impressive thing about Pederson is he took on the GOAT with a backup journey quarterback and beat him and his cheating coach with superior play calling. And unlike Gruden, won his Super Bowl in 2018 and not 20 years ago. (Fun fact, he also won a Super Bowl as a back up to Brett Farve).

b). Byron Leftwich. This guy has the respect of the GOAT and called some great plays for the Bucs during that playoff run last year. He went punch for punch with the high octane Chiefs and beat them at their game. The best part was he adapted from their previous loss and learned from it. This guy is going to be something special at some point in his coaching career.

c.) Joe Brady. There is something to be said about "youthful vigor". Who honestly thought that Carolina Panthers would be anything right now? Matt Darnold actually looks like a good quarterback too. That offense with few weapons is really creative. If we were to judge history with youthful head coaches, Sean McVey and Matt LaFleur have to be up there. LaFleur has a 30-7 record even though has made Aaron Rogers really mad a few times. Brady has done more with less.

Rich Bisaccia could always win the job outright if the Raider make the playoffs and made some noise and bring the band back together. That's a big IF at this point.

3. DO NOT HIRE DABO SWINNEY. College coaches are notorious for flaming out in the NFL. Before you can say "Pete Carroll" he first cut his teeth in the NFL before going to have success at the college ranks. The league has been littered with Chip Kelley's and Steve Spurrier's (and I predict Urban Meyer as well), not worth it.

4. Bring in one good free agent lineman to be a starter.

5. draft at least 2 solid lineman prospects.

2022=Super Bowl Champions