5 Worst Las Vegas Raiders' Losses During the Josh McDaniels' Era
The Josh McDaniels era is over in Las Vegas, and fans can breathe a sigh of relief! We can also now count down the top five worst losses of McDaniels' time with the Raiders. Join us as we go over how bad he really was. Spoiler alert- he's no offensive genius.
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The October 30th matchup between the Las Vegas Raiders and the Detroit Lions might not look like it belongs here. Josh McDaniels barely handled the Denver Broncos in week one, making a win against the 6-1 Lions highly unlikely. What bothers people about this matchup, however, is how close they came.
This is probably also one of the best examples of McDaniels not possessing a killer instinct as a coach. He had many opportunities to regain his team in this game and failed on every front. The defense gave up key play after key play, and Jimmy Garoppolo accomplished very little on offense.
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Josh McDaniels always seems to find a way to lose when it matters, which is why he will not be missed. This time, it was a 17-16 loss to the Los Angeles Rams during the 2022 season. McDaniels had been struggling at this point for much of the year and really needed this victory.
Why? It seemed at the time that his job would be on the line following this poor performance. A coach being retained after a 6-11 record is difficult to justify, making this one of McDaniels' last chances to impress. Of course, the Raiders ended up keeping him anyway, but what a crap show this one was in the end.
Las Vegas’ offense was white hot for once and scored ten points in the opening quarter. The Rams, on the other hand, only scored a field goal against the Raiders' defense, which was impressive. Everything looked good, and the Raiders were in control of the game. That’s when the inevitable happened, and they goofed up.
This occurred in the fourth quarter when the Las Vegas Raiders gave up 14 points and lost the game. Las Vegas also only produced three points that quarter, despite having multiple chances. McDaniels seemed to have no clue what he was doing, whether it was on defense or offense.
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One of Josh Mcdaniels' worst losses as the Las Vegas Raiders head coach has to be his 24-0 loss to the New Orleans Saints in 2022. What makes this game even worse is that the Raiders were in a pivotal part of their season. They were approaching the halfway point of the schedule and needed wins wherever they could get them.
Unfortunately, the Saints shocked the Raiders with one of their worst beatdowns in franchise history. New Orleans scored early and often, resulting in a 17-0 score at halftime. Las Vegas also kept allowing Alvin Kamara in the endzone, unable to stop him in the air or on the ground. Nothing the Raiders tried worked.
The fact that his team was 3-5 heading into their game against the Raiders makes this one so much worse. They even lost to a past-prime Andy Dalton.
Related: 5 Bold Predictions for The Las Vegas Aces in 2024
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Source. YouTube[/caption]
Another major problem for Josh McDaniels throughout his coaching career is never being able to make a statement. Of course, he won games occasionally, but it was never a statement victory. He either won by the skin of his teeth or lost due to some embarrassing mistake.
He needed to go big in the final game of the 2023 season against the Kansas City Chiefs. Instead, the Raiders were outscored 31-13 in a game that was never close. The Chiefs scored 17 points in the second quarter alone, giving them a 24-3 lead.
It is worth noting that Derek Carr was benched at this point in the season, putting starting duties on Jarrett Stidham. The Raiders claimed this was an attempt to evaluate the young player and see how he did under center. The problem with this is that Stidham was cut less than a year later after only three starts.
McDaniels probably decided to evaluate Stidham in hopes that he could start from scratch and impress management. That idea promptly blew up in his face, resulting in another loss.
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There are some things you never forget, and Josh McDaniels' loss to the Indianapolis Colts in 2022 is one of them. The reason is that McDaniels was matched against interim head coach Jeff Saturday, whose only coaching experience comes from the high school level. He also worked as an analyst on ESPN for several years.
Despite that lack of experience, he outcoached the man who learned under Bill Belichick and helped the Colts to a 25-21 victory. There is just no excuse for this loss. You don’t just lose a game to an interim head coach with no experience if you know what you’re doing.
The Colts started things with a touchdown to put them up by seven. Las Vegas later responded with a score of their own, but the defense couldn’t hold the Colts. Things all came down to the fourth quarter, where a last-chance score by the Colts gave McDaniels the most embarrassing loss of his pitiful coaching career.
Next: Best places to go Mountain Biking near Las Vegas
#5 Raiders vs Detroit Lions (October 30, 2023)
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Source. Facebook[/caption]The October 30th matchup between the Las Vegas Raiders and the Detroit Lions might not look like it belongs here. Josh McDaniels barely handled the Denver Broncos in week one, making a win against the 6-1 Lions highly unlikely. What bothers people about this matchup, however, is how close they came.
This is probably also one of the best examples of McDaniels not possessing a killer instinct as a coach. He had many opportunities to regain his team in this game and failed on every front. The defense gave up key play after key play, and Jimmy Garoppolo accomplished very little on offense.
#4 Raiders vs Los Angeles Rams (December 8, 2022)
[caption id="attachment_40870" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
Source. YouTube.[/caption]Josh McDaniels always seems to find a way to lose when it matters, which is why he will not be missed. This time, it was a 17-16 loss to the Los Angeles Rams during the 2022 season. McDaniels had been struggling at this point for much of the year and really needed this victory.
Why? It seemed at the time that his job would be on the line following this poor performance. A coach being retained after a 6-11 record is difficult to justify, making this one of McDaniels' last chances to impress. Of course, the Raiders ended up keeping him anyway, but what a crap show this one was in the end.
Las Vegas’ offense was white hot for once and scored ten points in the opening quarter. The Rams, on the other hand, only scored a field goal against the Raiders' defense, which was impressive. Everything looked good, and the Raiders were in control of the game. That’s when the inevitable happened, and they goofed up.
This occurred in the fourth quarter when the Las Vegas Raiders gave up 14 points and lost the game. Las Vegas also only produced three points that quarter, despite having multiple chances. McDaniels seemed to have no clue what he was doing, whether it was on defense or offense.
#3 Las Vegas vs New Orleans Saints (October 30, 2022)
[caption id="attachment_40871" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
Source. YouTube.[/caption]One of Josh Mcdaniels' worst losses as the Las Vegas Raiders head coach has to be his 24-0 loss to the New Orleans Saints in 2022. What makes this game even worse is that the Raiders were in a pivotal part of their season. They were approaching the halfway point of the schedule and needed wins wherever they could get them.
Unfortunately, the Saints shocked the Raiders with one of their worst beatdowns in franchise history. New Orleans scored early and often, resulting in a 17-0 score at halftime. Las Vegas also kept allowing Alvin Kamara in the endzone, unable to stop him in the air or on the ground. Nothing the Raiders tried worked.
The fact that his team was 3-5 heading into their game against the Raiders makes this one so much worse. They even lost to a past-prime Andy Dalton.
Related: 5 Bold Predictions for The Las Vegas Aces in 2024
#2 Raiders vs Kansas City Chiefs (January 7, 2023)
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Source. YouTube[/caption]Another major problem for Josh McDaniels throughout his coaching career is never being able to make a statement. Of course, he won games occasionally, but it was never a statement victory. He either won by the skin of his teeth or lost due to some embarrassing mistake.
He needed to go big in the final game of the 2023 season against the Kansas City Chiefs. Instead, the Raiders were outscored 31-13 in a game that was never close. The Chiefs scored 17 points in the second quarter alone, giving them a 24-3 lead.
It is worth noting that Derek Carr was benched at this point in the season, putting starting duties on Jarrett Stidham. The Raiders claimed this was an attempt to evaluate the young player and see how he did under center. The problem with this is that Stidham was cut less than a year later after only three starts.
McDaniels probably decided to evaluate Stidham in hopes that he could start from scratch and impress management. That idea promptly blew up in his face, resulting in another loss.
#1 Las Vegas Raiders vs Indianapolis Colts (November 13, 2022)
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Source. YouTube[/caption]There are some things you never forget, and Josh McDaniels' loss to the Indianapolis Colts in 2022 is one of them. The reason is that McDaniels was matched against interim head coach Jeff Saturday, whose only coaching experience comes from the high school level. He also worked as an analyst on ESPN for several years.
Despite that lack of experience, he outcoached the man who learned under Bill Belichick and helped the Colts to a 25-21 victory. There is just no excuse for this loss. You don’t just lose a game to an interim head coach with no experience if you know what you’re doing.
The Colts started things with a touchdown to put them up by seven. Las Vegas later responded with a score of their own, but the defense couldn’t hold the Colts. Things all came down to the fourth quarter, where a last-chance score by the Colts gave McDaniels the most embarrassing loss of his pitiful coaching career.
Next: Best places to go Mountain Biking near Las Vegas