Did Brady and the Raiders Give up on Tom Telesco Too Soon?

It was assumed the Las Vegas Raiders abruptly fired former general manager Tom Telesco to make their vacant head coaching position more appealing for Ben Johnson. After Johnson accepted the Chicago Bears' job, it is fair to wonder if the Raiders moved on too quickly from Telesco.

Dec 16, 2024; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Las Vegas Raiders general manager Tom Telesco reacts during the game against the Atlanta Falcons at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Sometimes, the desire for change can lead to changes that may or may not need to be necessary. Such is the case for the Las Vegas Raiders after they lost out on former Detroit Lions coordinator Ben Johnson.

Johnson was rumored not to have had the Raiders on his initial list of teams to interview with but changed his mind because of the presence of Raiders' minority owner Tom Brady. Johnson was also rumored to have wanted the Chicago Bears job initially but allegedly wanted more of a say in having a say in any perspective team's general manager.

The Raiders, filled with problems, fired former head coach Antonio Pierce, which was widely expected. However, what was not widely expected was the Raiders firing former general manager Tom Telesco days later, after one season on the job.

Firing Telesco only made sense to make the vacant head coaching position more desirable for Johnson, the offseason's top head coaching candidate. He was the only coach who was rumored to want to pick or have a say in who would be the general manager of the team he chose to go to.

While Johnson's desire to pick a general manager was mainly speculative, the Raiders did not fire Telesco for no reason. There was no other legitimate reason to fire Telesco after one season, considering the Raiders' draft haul last offseason, than to appeal to Johnson.

After years of botching the NFL Draft, Telesco and the Raiders' scout team put together one of the best draft classes the Raiders have had in the last decade. Telseco also got rid of a bad contract for an aging wide receiver who did not want to be in Las Vegas anymore and got draft capital in return.

Yet, Telesco was still fired.

Let's face it: Everything about the Raiders' general manager and head coaching positions is difficult. Those two positions are more difficult than they are with nearly any other team in the National Football League.

The roster is not good and needs an overhaul. The Raiders do not have a quality group of quarterbacks in a division that also has Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert.

The Raiders have an owner many coaches around the league may be hesitant to work for, and Tom Brady is all but running the show now, making it anyone's guess who has a long-term future with the team.

Of all the vacant head coaching positions around the league, the Raiders could be argued to have the worst situation for a first-time head coach to walk into.

The same could be said about the general manager position. No one can argue Pierce's firing; head coaches have been fired for less.

However, after years of struggling in the draft, the Raiders fired the general manager who helped secure one of the best drafts in recent memory for the Silver and Black less than a week after the end of his first season with the team.

Now, the Raiders lost out on Johnson and still do not have a general manager or a head coach. The Raiders firing their general manager for a coach who decided to sign elsewhere may prove to be a massive mistake.

Ensure you follow on X (Twitter) @HondoCarpenter and IG @HondoSr and never miss another breaking news story again.

Please let us know your thoughts when you like our Facebook page WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE.