DETROIT – The Detroit Lions beat the Raiders like a drum on Monday Night Football, and that caused Las Vegas to quietly fire its head coach and general manager in the middle of the night.
The final score might not have showed it, but what the Lions did to the Raiders on national television was borderline mean. Detroit racked up 486 yards and held Las Vegas to 157. Rookie running back Jahmyr Gibbs had more total yards than the Raiders all by himself.
Las Vegas picked up just 12 first downs on 11 drives, gave up six sacks, averaged 3.5 yards per play, and only completed one measly pass to star receiver Davante Adams. Even though the Lions tried to beat themselves by turning the ball over three times (including a pick-six) and committing five penalties for 55 yards, the Raiders refused to take advantage.
Las Vegas fell to 3-5 on the season, and then, in the middle of the night Tuesday into Wednesday (1 a.m., to be exact), head coach Josh McDaniels and general manager David Ziegler were unceremoniously booted from the premises.
“After much thought about what the Raiders need to move forward, I have decided to part ways with Josh and Dave,” owner Mark Davis said in a graphic on Twitter that had very tiny lettering. “I want to thank them both for their hard work and wish them and their families nothing but the best.”
Not exactly warm and fuzzy, huh? As far as sports breakups go, Davis basically told them to “get lost.”
McDaniels took over as the head coach last season after the Raiders went 10-7 and made the playoffs in 2021. He went 9-16 overall.
His team’s performance in Detroit must have been the last straw, though. The Raiders would have been on the fringe of a playoff spot with a win, but instead, they got crushed and now have the second-worst record in the AFC.
Lions fans can sympathize. How many times have they called for a coach’s job midway through a miserable season? At least for now, those days appear to be over in Detroit.
