New Coaching Staff Brings Increased, Expedited Attention for 2 Raiders

After years of producing one of the worst rosters and records in the National Football League, the Las Vegas Raiders are determined to turn things around. They have already taken big swings in free agency to address needs. Las Vegas also has 10 draftees that will soon infuse talent into its roster.

It would be hard to find another team in the league that has improved as much, or as quickly, as the Raiders have this offseason.

Expedited Expectations

Part of turning things around for the Raiders on the field, will depend on their ability to turn things around off the field. Specifically, Las Vegas must fix its roster. Then, change the culture and the expectations throughout the building, and the wins will come.

Doing so will start from the top. Las Vegas wants more wins; they must start by adding more talent and holding that talent to higher expectations. In some cases, it is fair for those expectations to be expedited. Two of those cases are listed below.

Jack Bech

Bech was Raiders general manager John Spytek's second-ever draft pick, behind running back Ashton Jeanty. There is no question about Jeanty heading into next season, as the Raiders will have improved in several ways that greatly and directly benefit him. However, Bech is different.

It is fair to acknowledge that Bech was one of the many rookies that was held back by Pete Carroll's coaching staff. However, the Raiders also needed more from Bech as well. This offseason, they need Bech to significantly improve. More specifically, they need him to contribute more in 2026.

Every wide receiver would be negatively impacted by playing on an offense with the worst offensive line in the league. That led to the Raiders also having a quarterback who led the league in interceptions. All of these things negatively impacted Bech and others.

Las Vegas also had what many around the league believe was the worst offensive coordinator in the league, in Chip Kelly. All of these things stunted the growth of Bech and others, which is what makes this offseason and next offseason so pivotal for those players and the Raiders' front office.

Many of the legitimate reasons behind Bech's subpar rookie seasons have been addressed this offseason. The Raiders have a head coach who has proven he can produce an offense that can win in today's league, and not the NFL from two decades ago, like two of the Raiders' past three coaches.

They will add Fernando Mendoza to address their long-standing issues at quarterback. They have already added one of the league's best offensive linemen, Tyler Linderbaum, and will continue to fix their offensive line. There are no more excuses available for Bech, legitimate ones or not.

The Raiders' front office is just as determined to solidify their group of wide receivers as they are to solidify their offensive line. With an improved roster and coaching staff, the Raiders need Bech to produce more than 224 yards in 16 games.

As Las Vegas continues to improve its group of wide receivers, it is not married to Bech simply because he was drafted in the second round. He and his draft classmate, Donte Thornton, must improve this offseason.

Dont'e Thornton

The Raiders are not married to Bech, nor are they married to Thornton. The former fourth-round pick has all the physical tools to be productive in the league, but must fine-tune his game and quickly improve.

Spytek will be patient with both Bech and Thornton, but he does not have to be patient for long. If Bech or Thornton have a subpar offseason and 2026 regular season, Las Vegas' group of wide receivers will be on high alert entering the 2027 offseason.