The Las Vegas Raiders fired coach Josh McDaniels and general manager Dave Ziegler in the middle of their second season with the team.
HENDERSON, NEVADA – When Josh McDaniels was hired by the Las Vegas Raiders in January 2022, he said he learned from his first stint as an NFL head coach.
McDaniels’ record was actually worse the second time around than it was with the Denver Broncos in 2009 and 2010, and the Raiders fired McDaniels and general manager Dave Ziegler late Tuesday.
McDaniels was the first non-interim coach in Super Bowl history to be fired by two teams before the end of his second season.
“After much thought about what the Raiders need to move forward, I have decided to part ways with Josh and Dave,” Davis said in a statement. “I want to thank them both for their hard work and wish them and their families nothing but the best.”
The Raiders announced linebackers coach Antonio Pierce will take over as the interim coach. His first game will be Sunday at home against the New York Giants, for whom he played from 2005-09.
The Raiders also announced assistant general manager Champ Kelly will be the interim GM.
The team will conduct searches for replacements for McDaniels and Ziegler after the season.
McDaniels was the Raiders play caller, but offensive coordinator Mick Lombardi won’t be taking over those duties. The Raiders also fired Lombardi on Wednesday, a person with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press.
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Davis had hoped to bring the New England Patriots’ success westward when he hired McDaniels, the longtime Patriots offensive coordinator. Ziegler worked in New England’s front office, and the former teammates at John Carroll University transformed the Raiders into Patriots West by signing several players with ties to that organization.
But despite taking over a team that made the playoffs in 2021 before losing to the Cincinnati Bengals in the wild-card round, the success Davis so badly wanted never made its way to Las Vegas.
The Raiders under McDaniels went 6-11 in 2022 and are 3-5 this season for a .360 winning percentage. His record in Denver was 11-17 (.393).
