- While offsets and mitigation should help, this is still an expensive move
- Davis has reportedly apologized to some Raiders players for wasting their season
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Las Vegas Raiders owner Mark Davis proved that money wouldn’t be an issue when it comes to making the tough decisions for his franchise.
Earlier this week, the Raiders parted ways with general manager Dave Ziegler and head coach Josh McDaniels after the team lost to the Detroit Lions on Monday Night Football, falling to 3-5 on the season.
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, these decisions won’t come cheap, as sources told him that Las Vegas will have to pay $85 million as a result of their firing.
Compensations and mitigation will cover some of the costs, but a source told ESPN that this was “nevertheless an expensive move.”
The Raiders also reworked the contracts of interim GM Champ Kelly and interim head coach Antonio Pierce.
(L to R) Ex-Raiders GM Dave Ziegler, owner Mark Davis, ex-head coach Josh McDaniels
McDaniels (L) and Ziegler (R) will cost the Raiders $85 million after being fired
The Raiders installed interim GM Champ Kelly (L) and interim head coach Antonio Pierce (R)
Sources told Schefter that Davis is more concerned about building a winning team than managing the franchise’s finances.
“Unfortunately, I had high expectations for Josh and Dave,” Davis told ESPN’s Paul Gutierrez on Wednesday. ‘It looked like we were going in the wrong direction.
“So with the trade deadline, I felt like it was time to make a change, time to do something.”
The Raiders’ 26-14 loss to Detroit cemented the front office’s fortunes, and Davis now seemed more than ready to hit the panic button.
The owner reportedly apologized to some players for “wasting their season” and confided to some people within the organization that a change was necessary.