🔗 Share this article

Tom Brady committed 23 NFL seasons to a singular objective: becoming the greatest quarterback in NFL history. He achieved that goal. Today, in retirement, Brady has ventured into numerous endeavors. He serves as a commentator for a major network. He's involved in development ventures in Birmingham. He has endorsed cryptocurrency. He's expanding the NFL to Saudi Arabia. He operates a successful YouTube channel. He replicated his family pet. Brady's post-career ventures appear either diverse or aimless, based on your viewpoint.

Secondary ventures are understandable. But managing a NFL team is not a casual commitment. Alongside his other roles, Brady functions as the de facto football leader for the Las Vegas franchise, presently the least successful team in the league.

The Raiders dropped to 2–9 on this past weekend after enduring a decisive loss to the Browns. The Raiders didn't just get defeated; they were embarrassed by a underperforming team with a quarterback making his professional debut. The Raiders' offense averaged less than three yards per play before meaningless plays in the fourth quarter. Geno Smith was sacked 10 times and was pressured 46 times, a season record for any team this season. On the defensive side, Las Vegas surrendered significant gains to a Cleveland offense that has been dysfunctional for the majority of the season. Any way you slice it, it was a thorough domination. At least Brady didn't have to watch. The architect of this current situation was working in Dallas on the network coverage for another game.

A Series of Dubious Choices

To be fair to Brady, he has only been involved for a year leading the team's football decisions, after becoming a minority owner of the franchise in 2024. But he was responsible for every major decision last summer, and all of them has proven unsuccessful. Those decisions have left the Raiders as the least entertaining and aimless team in the NFL.

This wasn't expected to be a lengthy reconstruction. The Raiders didn't appoint veteran coach Pete Carroll, one of only three coaches to win both a championship and a college national championship, to manage a long slog back up the league table. He was supposed to restore the team to competitiveness and then hand them off with a solid foundation in place. Conversely, Carroll is staring at the possibility of being fired after one season in Vegas, and the Raiders are looking at another restart.

Franchise Dysfunction

This is not all Brady's fault, naturally. The majority owner is still the controlling stakeholder. Davis has cycled through coaches and executives at a speed that would make even the New York Jets blush. The Raiders are on their seventh coach and fifth general manager in 15 years, a instability that has erased any clear strategic direction. Nevertheless, it's Brady's fingerprints that are all over this iteration of the Raiders. "This is the Tom Brady show," league reporter Tom Pelissero said last offseason. "He's been integrally involved," Carroll said of Brady at his first press conference in January. "This is his chance to put his stamp on a team."

Brady was responsible for the key hires and set the Raiders on this rudderless course. He hired John Spytek, his former teammate and colleague in Tampa, to act as general manager. He approved a team strategy to the coach's specifications, including trading a draft selection for Smith and selecting a RB No 6 overall despite having a bottom-tier O-line. He recruited Chip Kelly away from the college ranks, making him the top-earning OC in the NFL. And he approved entrusting a unreliable offensive line – the foundation for that coach and ball carrier – to the coach's family member.

Disastrous Results

It has become a complete failure. Last season's Raiders were a team with limited success, but they were scrappy and resilient. The current Raiders are a confused mess. Carroll has implemented an old-fashioned defensive philosophy, the quarterback looks washed and the Raiders' blocking unit has undermined any aspirations for their rookie and the run game. At the very least, Carroll was supposed to bring energy. But the Raiders were uninspired on Sunday, waiting for the plays to the end of the game.

The difference with Cleveland was stark. Things are always bleak with the Browns, but there are embers of hope. Their star defender, now just five sacks away from the league all-time mark, leads a dominant defensive unit. And there is positive outlook around the impressive rookie class that includes multiple promising talents – Quinshon Judkins at running back and a skilled defender at LB. There is also the rookie QB, who may not be the permanent solution at quarterback, but who is An Answer in the short-term.

Granted, it was facing the Raiders' defensive unit, but Sanders demonstrated that the NFL level was not too big for him. With a full week to get ready, he was effective, accepting what the defense gave him and showing glimpses of improvisation. Sanders became the first Browns rookie quarterback to win his first start since 1995.

Lack of Vision

Sanders and the rest of the Browns' rookie class symbolize future potential. That's a mirror the Raiders should avoid. Good organizations recognize their situation in the league hierarchy: you're either a championship candidate, a frisky playoff team, or rebuilding. Vegas entered 2025 believing they were a couple of moves away from respectability. In spite of the clear indications otherwise, they failed to adjust midstream. Similar to the Browns, Vegas should be playing rookies to discover what they have for the future. But only two rookies have seen real playing time. There has apparently already been tension between the coaches and the management regarding the limited playing time for two rookie offensive linemen, despite the offensive line being a weak point. First-year pass catchers Jack Bech and Dont'e Thornton Jr have totaled nine receptions in 11 games, despite the ineffectiveness in the aerial attack. Carroll continues to utilize experienced veterans on defense over rookies in need of reps.

Uncertain Direction

What is the path forward? Will Carroll be back or the GM or Smith? And who actually makes those decisions, Brady or Davis? How can a team operate when its most powerful decision-maker participates sporadically, signs off franchise-altering moves, and then disappears on other projects?

It's going to be a challenge for the Raiders to improve – and they are in a division stacked with consistently successful teams. At the same time, other rebuilders have clear trajectories. The Jets are loaded with future draft picks. The Titans and Giants have promising young quarterbacks. The Raiders have little to build upon. No foundation. No franchise QB. No distinctive style. No strategic vision.

The single factor more dangerous than being ineffective in the NFL is not recognizing you're underperforming. The Raiders don't know where they are, what they are building, or who will call the shots in the summer.

Tom Brady once mastered football through ruthless focus. The Raiders could use more than limited attention of it.