Getty Former Las Vegas Raiders HC Josh McDaniels.
When the Las Vegas Raiders fired Josh McDaniels last season, they didn’t only fire their head coach, but also their offensive playcaller. McDaniels’ offense was known for being very complex and difficult to learn.
That didn’t lead to much success as the Raiders finished with the 23rd-scoring offense in the NFL last season. The team hired Luke Getsy to take over as offensive coordinator and the new offense he’s installing is already much easier to learn, according to tight end Michael Mayer.
“It’s easier than last year,” Mayer said during a May 21 press conference.“… I’d say it’s a little bit more simple. A little bit more simple, a little bit easier to understand.”
Easier doesn’t always mean better but sometimes coaches can overcomplicate gameplans. Considering the Raiders don’t have a set start at quarterback yet, having a simple offensive system makes the most sense. Time will tell if Getsy has more success than McDaniels did as a playcaller.
Michael Mayer Happier Than Last Year
Even if the offensive system under Getsy isn’t necessarily better than what McDaniels was doing, there’s no doubt players like Mayer are happier with simplicity. The former second-round pick opened up about how he wasn’t in the best head space last season.
“My mentality, my attitude this year — nothing wrong with last year, but it’s different this year. It’s different. I’m way happier, I’m more positive, I love to be here out on this field. I love to play football, man, it’s what I do, it’s my job,” Mayer said. “I’ve definitely flipped the script a little bit.
“Last year, maybe there were some days I didn’t wanna come in or something was going down — I flipped the script. It’s time to dig down, play some ball, win some ball games and do what I need to do for this team. Rookie year is over. That’s way in the past. I’ve already reflected on it, I’ve already put it behind me, I don’t even think about it anymore.”
A big reason why McDaniels was let go was due to player morale across the roster being low. Antonio Pierce injected the locker room with a lot of life when he was promoted to interim head coach. Now that he’s the full-time head coach, the vibes around the Raiders seem very positive.
Michael Mayer Excited About Direction of Offense
The Raiders offense struggled to be consistent last season. It didn’t help that the team had to switch playcallers halfway through the season. However, Mayer thinks the offense is in a good place and could be much better this season.
“I’m very happy with the way this offense is going so far and what we’re going to be able to do on the offensive side,” Mayer said.
There’s no lack of talent on the Raiders offense. The only concern is at quarterback. Aidan O’Connell is entering his second season after being a fourth-round pick in 2023 and Gardner Minshew has mostly been a backup in his career. If the Raiders can at least get average quarterback play, they have enough talent on offense to score a decent amount of points.
