Patriots

‘I think this is an amazing hire’: NFL analysts explain why Raiders hiring Josh McDaniels is a ‘home run’

"This is one of the best coaches in the National Football League."

Josh McDaniels's hiring by the Raiders has earned a lot of praise. Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

January 30, 2022

Josh McDaniels is set to become an NFL head coach again, this time as the head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders. NFL analysts were quick to share their approval of the hire.

On ESPN’s “NFL Countdown,” former Patriots Tedy Bruschi and Randy Moss along with former Jets and Bills coach Rex Ryan each shared why they think McDaniels will be a success in Las Vegas despite his bad tenure in Denver.

“I think he’s ready,” Bruschi said. “I think Josh has done enough to know how he failed in Denver. I’ll just say this straight up: he tried to be Bill Belichick in Denver — and that’s not who you are. He’s a different person, to maintain your own individuality, I think he’s learned that.

“I spent a lot of time with him in training camp and talking to him when Mac Jones was up-and-coming. Josh is ready to go now and take advantage of his second opportunity. I think that you learn — I mean, Bill didn’t survive his first head coaching job either in Cleveland. He was fired. You learn from certain things. And Josh is that kind of guy that will learn from that.”

Bruschi also explained how McDaniels’s personality has changed from the time he was fired from the Broncos in 2010 to now.

“I think he’s more mature now,” Bruschi said. “He knows that ‘I’ve got my own little flavor to myself. I don’t have to go ahead and say the same things, act the same way, be the way I think a head coach should be. I’m going to be who I am.’ It takes a little bit of time for coaches to realize that I don’t want to do an initiation, and I think that’s where Josh is.”

Moss, who played under McDaniels and the Patriots after his tenure on the Raiders, shared why he’s excited for his old team.

“The reason why is because we’ve seen how the Las Vegas Raiders looked like through ups and downs the whole season,” Moss said. “You have Josh McDaniels, who had his first coaching stint with the Denver Broncos, some people talk about, ‘He’s too young, he wasn’t ready to go.’ But he went back home to Bill Belichick to get seasoned up a little bit.”

“The Las Vegas Raiders just got them a great coach in Josh McDaniels,” Moss added. “I just hope he continues to bring out the best in this team, including Derek Carr.”

Ryan, who used to face McDaniels’s offenses twice a season, might have been the most excited about the hire and like Moss, is looking forward to see what McDaniels will do with Carr.

“First off, this is a great hire for the Raiders. This guy, let’s not get it twisted, is one of the best coaches in the National Football League. He was so young when he took that job [with the Broncos]. He’s had time away from the head coaching position to come back [to New England].

“I think this is an amazing hire for the Raiders. I don’t think they could’ve hired a better guy. So, if I’m Derek Carr, I’m so excited right now to have this guy. This is a home run, in my opinion.”

Carr was among the top passers in the league in terms of yards this past season, ranking fifth with 4,804 yards. But his passing touchdowns ranked closer to the middle-of-the-pack with 23. As a team, the Raiders had the 11th-best offense in the NFL but their scoring lagged, ranking 18th in points per game (22.0).

To help combat their red-zone struggles, McDaniels reportedly laid out a plan to use running back Josh Jacobs more while incorporating more play-action and two-tight end sets.