How it started:

" We can’t pay a QB like Rodgers or Lamar Jackson….we need that money for defense in free agency!! Gotta build the defense in free agency!!"

How it’s going:

" Thank goodness we didn’t spend big in free agency because of all the dead money we already have!! We must be smart!! We must be patient!! We must build through the draft!!"

*Spoiler alert* - when our draft is disappointing this April, they’ll say - " hey, it was one of the worst drafts of all time!! The talent wasn’t there this year!!" Just like many have already noted. This year’s draft class isn’t very strong.

Look, here’s the deal, Nation - all of these Raider content creators ( including many that are here) are a part of the machine. They preach patience and build hope to keep up interest, and they capitalize off of said interest. They’re no better than the other parts of the machine. If taking their cheese doesn’t bother you - go for it.

We never were getting any of these holes filled in free agency. None. Not QB. Not defense. That’s the reality of having a bottom tier owner making decisions.

The one positive from Mark’s HC hire is that McDaniels ran the phony under center out of town.

Still, imagine moving your NFL franchise to income tax free Las Vegas, a prime destination for players - and then you hire McDoofus - who proven vets do not want to play for (unless they’re former Patriots).

One conclusion we could come to at this point is - Mark Davis never had any intention of being a big cash/bonus spender to pull proven talent to Las Vegas.

The other - Mark Davis is legitimately an idiot.

Which would be incredible because Mark’s done a decent job renovating for the most part. He simply cannot find the right leader to captain the ship. Hurts that much more when you consider the lifeline we received when Gruden was run out of the league.

" Relationships matter"..that’s what Josh McDaniels preached on the way in, but it’s not sticking.

Do I care that Carr was too much of a wimp to handle McDaniels’ criticism of his terrible film? No, I do not. I don’t want a sensitive QB. McDaniels gets a pass there because real leaders are harder on themselves than any coach could be - and Derek Carr was quite comfortable with being average….quite comfortable within the " instability" that his brother moaned about. Derek enjoyed that excuse for many years.

However, the combination of Josh McDaniels’ reputation + Mark’s finances are holding this franchise back. It’s an equation - a problem - that we’re stuck with….unless this franchise becomes one of the best teams in the league in terms of adding controllable talent in the draft. That’s it. We got nothin’ else. We’re essentially relying on a lottery ticket.

Maxx Crosby obviously gives 110% on every play and in every practice, so he’s the quintessential leader for Josh McDaniels. They could afford to lose Waller - which I predicted would happen because of the $11.4M in savings and a very strong TE draft class. They could also afford to lose crybaby Carr because he’s average and overpaid.

But what they cannot afford to lose is Maxx Crosby’s commitment. If it turns out - a year or two from now - that Maxx is also pushed out, or wants out because " he’s not one of their guys"….ooooh, boy. You think the Nation is stirring now? I feel the Raider Nation revolution will truly begin on that day. Because Raider Nation has only been united upon one thing in recent years and one thing only - Maxx Crosby is the quintessential Raider.

Lose Maxx? How many of us would just rather have a new owner? All of us.