As I walked out of Allegiant Stadium in the middle of last November, following the Las Vegas Raiders’ miserable home defeat to the Dallas Cowboys, I looked at all the downcast fans trudging away and I thought, why does Tom Brady want to be involved with this?
As many of you know, the seven-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback has a top front office job with the Raiders, as well as being a TV commentator, and it’s his job to try to build the silver and black back into a contender. But they felt miles away from contention on that night in November.
They’d just lost 33-16 to the Cowboys, Geno Smith was ineffective a quarterback and arguing with fans in the stands, star defensive end Max Crosby was so frustrated at the final gun that he launched his helmet about 40 yards across the field.
That stadium in Las Vegas is nicknamed the Death Star, and as I walked away that night, I was reminded of the very first Star Wars film and thought, like the original Death Star, this thing needs to be blown up. Not the stadium, but the football program.
Head coach Pete Carroll was in the final throes of his potentially Hall of Fame career, and it’s kind of fitting that he was in Las Vegas. It’s the place where legendary names go to sell tickets, and I felt like that was what was happening there with the Raiders last year with Pete Carroll at the helm.
But this team is now laying down what seem to be proper foundations. They had the first overall pick in the NFL draft, and they used it well with the obvious selection of Fernando Mendoza out of Indiana.
And then you think, well, that means they’re going to throw him into the fire straight away. That’s been the way it’s been done in the NFL in recent years. There aren’t many teams that take a patient approach anymore.
Rookie quarterbacks are thrown to the wolves occasionally. Look at Cam Ward last year with the Tennessee Titans. Beaten from start to finish of the season, then spends the first part of the offseason rehabbing a shoulder injury that he suffered in Week 18.
The last really patient approach of quarterback that was notable was probably the Kansas City Chiefs resisting the temptation to put Patrick Mahomes in as a rookie, having him sit and learn for a year under an unselfish proven veteran in Alex Smith. And the Raiders have replicated that model, and so far it’s worked.
They brought in Kirk Cousins, and the relationship between Cousins and Mendoza is not only endearing and quirky, it’s also going to be very valuable. Cousins will have some limitations as a quarterback, but he is a safe pair of hands, and he knows how to get you in and out of the huddle. He knows how to win games.
Even this past week, as the Raiders moved to 2-0 on the season, you saw some of the veteran smarts that are going to help the Silver and Black this year.
On one of his touchdown passes against the Chargers, pre-snap, Cousins was constantly looking behind, signaling to the running back time and time again. Now yes, he could have been calling out protections, but it’s also a good chance he was trying to pull the defense into thinking a running play was coming, and then he tosses the ball into the end zone for a touchdown.
So the Raiders are 2-0, one of the surprising teams to be with that record in the early stages of this season, and they can now really take their time in bringing Mendoza along. I spoke to Cousins in the summer, and he talked about why he was excited for this opportunity in Las Vegas, and I got the impression it was because this is his job for this year if things go well.
I could see a scenario where we have a wire-to-wire Cousins situation with the Raiders, and how he works with Klint Kubiak, the new head coach, he’s got it all laid out before him. It’s going to be fascinating to see.
The thing with Kirk as well is he’s one of the most unselfish and nicest guys in the NFL. So even if it’s to his long-term detriment, he is going to bring Mendoza along. He is not going to close himself off in the quarterback room. He’s never going to keep secrets and tips and advice to himself.
He will be an extra coach in effect for their franchise quarterback in waiting. So it feels like there’s a newer approach with the Raiders, a more patient approach.
I think Kubiak has time now to build the program the right way. He’s got young players who he can work with for many years. Ashton Jeanty at running back, Brock Bowers at tight end. If they can keep Maxx Crosby healthy and productive on the other side of the ball, then there are pieces in place.
But the most important piece for the Raiders this season is a quarterback that very few teams around the NFL wanted anymore, and that’s Kirk Cousins. He has a mighty role to play for the Silver and Black this season, but how he operates in the coming months could set the stage for this team to be competitive in many, many years to come.
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Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: skynews.com
