It has been a tough one for Mark Davis since taking over ownership of the Las Vegas Raiders. He’s thrived as the owner of the Las Vegas Aces, having overseen three championships since 2022, but hasn’t sniffed that kind of success with the Raiders.
In fact, the team hasn’t even won a playoff game since he became controlling owner in 2011. He has hired and fired many coaches and general managers. This time, he’s hoping he has got it right with Klint Kubiak and John Spytek.
What could make or break the Raiders for the next several years is No. 1 draft pick Fernando Mendoza. The team hasn’t been great at quarterback for the last two decades, outside of a few really strong Derek Carr seasons.
Mendoza has a chance to be the Raiders’ best quarterback since Rich Gannon. Davis hasn’t spoken about the rookie quarterback since the team drafted him, but he finally gave some thoughts on Mendoza.
“With Fernando Mendoza coming in as potentially the starting quarterback is just so exciting,” Davis said, via Raiders.com. We’ve got the pieces in place, it’s going to take a while to get all the players and everything, but I believe we’re at the forefront of getting this thing going again.”
Davis Praises Raiders’ Offseason
The Raiders were among the biggest spenders in free agency this offseason. They had a ton of salary cap space and decided to use almost all of it up.
This offseason has a chance to be a defining moment for the Raiders. If most of the moves work out, they’ll be a playoff team within the next few years. If not, they’ll be back in the NFL’s basement.
For his part, Davis was a really big fan of what the team did.
“The offseasons have been very strong for us,” Davis said. “We continually win the offseason, it’s time to now make it translate to the regular season. I do feel a different vibe around this building right now. Everybody really is working together. Everybody seems to be on the same page. It seems like we’re ready to go for a long-term, sustained growth now.”
Are the Raiders Finally Building a Winner?
The Raiders have arguably been the worst NFL franchise since 2002. They have two winning seasons and no playoff wins. The Miami Dolphins and Cleveland Browns are the only other franchises that have been that consistently bad, but the latter at least has a playoff win in that span.
There have been a few moments over the last two decades when it looked like the Raiders were turning a corner. However, the success was short-lived every time.
It looks like the Raiders are building something good, but it really comes down to Mendoza. If he’s a top-10 quarterback by the end of his rookie contract, the team is going to win a lot of games. If he’s just good, but not great, the Raiders may end up in the same cycle they’ve been in. General manager John Spytek is off to a good start, but he’s got to prove he can build something sustainable.
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