It wasn’t a secret that superstar wide receiver Davante Adams wasn’t thrilled with the state of the Las Vegas Raiders before head coach Josh McDaniels and general manager Dave Ziegler were fired this week.
The veteran wideout told reporters on Thursday that change of some variety was needed:
“It’s not a celebration that we have a new coach and that changes were made. One way or the other, it was time for some sort of change just to bring a little juice in and revitalize the team a little bit,” he said. “I think it’s more of a mindset that we’re trying to, not force, but just have moving forward to just be as positive as possible.”
The Raiders promoted linebackers coach Antonio Pierce to interim head coach, while Champ Kelly will serve as interim general manager.
“I just didn’t see the progress,” owner Mark Davis told The Athletic’s Tashan Reed regarding the decision to make the moves. “I saw regression.”
It wasn’t the only major change for the 2-5 Raiders. The team also fired offensive coordinator Mick Lombardi and replaced him on an interim basis with former quarterbacks coach Bo Hardegree, who will take over play-calling duties, and chose to bench Jimmy Garoppolo in favor of rookie Aidan O’Connell going forward.
The hope will be that one of the outcomes is a far more prominent role for Adams in the offense.
The 30-year-old wideout, a six-time Pro Bowler and three-time first-team All-Pro selection, has registered 47 catches for 539 yards and three touchdowns this season. But he hasn’t caught a touchdown since Week 3 and only had one reception this past week on seven targets, as Garoppolo missed him twice deep down the field when he was wide open.
“Honestly, I don’t know what to say at this moment. I truly don’t,” Adams told reporters after the game. “I wish I had the words to say something that’s not going to get blown up in the media and taken out of context. Truly, I just don’t know.”
It wasn’t the first time he’s publicly expressed frustration.
“When you’re a player like me, mentally, my benchmark is not wins and losses—it’s greatness. So when I go out there, I expect to be able to have that ability to put that on tape and have an influence on the game,” he told reporters after having just two catches in a Week 6 win over the New England Patriots. “That’s my purpose for being here. I’m not here just to hang out; I came here to win and to do it the right way.”
In additional comments, Adams made the point that he is one of the team’s most dangerous playmakers, so the Raiders naturally will be a better offense if he’s more involved. Given his pedigree and the Raiders’ struggles this season, it was a fair point.
A bigger role hadn’t materialized under McDaniels, Hardegree and Garoppolo. Perhaps it will under Pierce, Hardegree and O’Connell. If nothing else, Adams wanted to see something change, and now it has.
