Ex-Broncos star shares damning criticism of Josh McDaniels as HC originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
Josh McDaniels seemed set up for success in Las Vegas.
He had a quality starting quarterback in Derek Carr and a fellow New England Patriots alum as his general manager in Dave Ziegler, who acquired All-Pro wide receiver Davante Adams to pair with slot man Hunter Renfrow and tight end Darren Waller.
But McDaniels’ stint as Raiders head coach has been an absolute disaster to date: Las Vegas is 2-6 and has blown three leads of 17 points or more through eight games. McDaniels is now 13-23 as an NFL head coach after a failed first stint with the Denver Broncos in 2010.
How could a brilliant football mind who found so much success as New England’s offensive coordinator struggle so much as a head coach?
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Former wide receiver Brandon Marshall, who played under McDaniels during the 2009 season in Denver, shared a harsh critique of his former boss Friday on the “Up & Adams” show with host Kay Adams.
“Josh McDaniels is definitely not suited to be a head coach. Absolutely not,” Marshall told Adams. ” … Because he doesn’t know how to lead people. You can have all the X’s and O’s in the world, but when you go into a losing locker room, the first thing you have to be able to do is get to the players’ minds and their hearts. And he’s not capable of doing that.
“He’s not capable of doing that with his players. He’s not capable of doing that with his coaches. And when things hit the fan, it gets worse with guys like that.”
Marshall pointed to Raiders linebacker Blake Martinez announcing his retirement just one month after joining the team as evidence that McDaniels isn’t getting through to the locker room.
“You have guys retiring mid-season. That’s horrible leadership,” Marshall added. “You want guys to rally around him. You want guys to say, ‘This is his first year back. I want to play for him and his wife and his kids.’ They’re doing the opposite. They’re saying, ‘I’m shutting it down.'”
It’s worth noting that Marshall and McDaniels clashed in Denver, where McDaniels benched the star wide receiver for the Broncos’ 2009 regular-season finale due to disciplinary reasons. So, Marshall’s assessment of McDaniels might be a little biased.
Still, it’s clear that something isn’t working for McDaniels in his second head coaching stint. And if the Raiders don’t right the ship fast, the ex-Patriots coordinator may find himself out of a job — and he may not get a third chance.