The Las Vegas Raiders were once known for their hard-hitting action, bench-clearing brawls, nail-biting finishes and moments of sheer brilliance. The Raiders won three Super Bowls and made 11 AFC Championship Game appearances over a 17-year span.
After taking a backseat to the San Francisco 49ers and Dallas Cowboys, they appeared to be surging once again at the turn of the century. That came to an abrupt halt when a young, unheralded quarterback ripped their hearts out on a snowy night in Foxboro Stadium.
Tom Brady’s overturned fumble, followed by a Super Bowl loss, sent the Raiders into a tailspin that they have yet to recover from. After decades of dysfunction, Las Vegas bottomed out as one of the league’s worst teams in 2024.
Now, the all-time great quarterback is attempting to set things right. Brady’s minority ownership stake was approved by NFL team owners in October, and he’s expected to play an integral role in helping the Raiders return to their former glory.
Tom Brady could decide Antonio Pierce’s future
On the “Scoop City” podcast, The Athletic’s Dianna Russini suggested Raiders owner Mark Davis wants Brady to be heavily involved in shaping the team’s future this offseason.
"Tom Brady is a minority owner and he’s going to be a part of this,” Russini said. “Mark Davis is very passionate about leaning on Tom Brady for thoughts, especially when they want to go pick a quarterback at some point here. Whether that means in the draft or if that means in free agency, if it means the quarterbacks that are on their roster right now.”
Brady’s involvement with the team will extend far beyond just deciding the team’s next quarterback. The seven-time Super Bowl champion will be involved in conversations that determine the fate of Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce, who was elevated to head coach after Josh McDaniels, Brady’s former offensive coordinator, was fired during the 2023 season.
“What I’ve learned recently is that it’s not just going to be Tom Brady’s thoughts on the quarterback position … but really, how involved Tom Brady is going to be in all regards, in everything that has to do with the Las Vegas Raiders,” Russini said. “Which, look, you're Mark Davis. You're frustrated. You haven't been able to get this thing right in a long time — yet, actually. So, they're going to have to make a decision about their head coach with Antonio Pierce. I've talked to people around the league who believe that this is probably going to be it for [Pierce]. … But I think Tom Brady is going to have a big hand in helping Mark Davis navigate the next steps here."
Davis has made it clear that he envisions a much larger role for Brady in the future — one which would involve him molding the team as head of football operations above the general manager and head coach, per Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
Whether or not Brady can find the same success as an executive that he found as a player remains to be seen. After all, Brady won’t be able to throw any touchdowns or mount any comebacks from the owner’s suite.