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The Raiders fired head coach Josh McDaniels last week following a season and a half tenure that saw him win only 9 out of 25 games with the team.
Since then, we’ve been getting countless stories about McDaniels as a person and as a coach, including a rumor about how he traded a star player because McDaniels’ wife found him attractive, another about how he called his kids back home from trick-or-treat in Halloween to tell them he’s been fired and another about how he pushed to sign bust free-agent signing, Jimmy Garoppolo, despite his own GM calling it a “Bad decision.”
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler revealed insider information, pointing to McDaniels’ “people skills” and the “team culture” as the primary issues leading to his firing.
Fowler sources shared that some players felt “overworked” and took their concerns directly to owner Mark Davis during a meeting. The growing discontent ultimately played a role in the decision to part ways not only with McDaniels but also with general manager Dave Ziegler and other staff members.
Despite McDaniels’ six-year contract inked with the Raiders in January 2022, the decision to let him go comes at a hefty price. Reportedly, owner Mark Davis is set to pay around $85 million to sever ties with McDaniels and the other departing staff members.
Despite all the McDaniels chaos, the Raiders have found some positivity in their new interim coach, Antonio Peirce, who wasted no time in making an impact.
Peirce already led the Raiders to a big win over the Giants, 30-6, and the team seems to be on the right track moving forward, especially if he keeps delivering more memorable post-game locker room speeches.