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Tom Brady committed over two decades to a singular objective: establishing himself as the most accomplished QB in NFL history. He achieved that goal. Now, in his post-playing career, Brady has explored various endeavors. He serves as a commentator for Fox. He's involved in development ventures in Birmingham. He has promoted cryptocurrency. He's expanding the NFL to Saudi Arabia. He operates a popular YouTube channel. He replicated his dog. Brady's post-career activities appear either eclectic or aimless, depending on your perspective.

Secondary ventures are understandable. But managing a professional franchise is not a part-time job. Alongside his various responsibilities, Brady functions as the de facto decision-maker for the Raiders, presently the most hapless team in the NFL.

The Raiders fell to 2–9 on this past weekend after suffering a decisive loss to the Cleveland Browns. The Raiders didn't just get defeated; they were embarrassed by a underperforming team with a quarterback making his professional debut. The Raiders' offense averaged less than three yards per play before meaningless action in the fourth quarter. Geno Smith was sacked 10 times and was pressured 46 times, a single-game high for any franchise this year. On defense, Las Vegas surrendered big plays to a Cleveland offense that has been dysfunctional for the majority of the campaign. Any way you slice it, it was a comprehensive beatdown. Fortunately Brady didn't have to witness it. The primary decision-maker of this current situation was sitting in Dallas on the network coverage for another game.

A Series of Questionable Choices

In fairness to Brady, he has only been involved for a year guiding the team's football decisions, after becoming a minority owner of the franchise in 2024. But he was accountable for every major decision last offseason, and all of them has backfired. Those decisions have resulted in the Raiders as the most unwatchable and aimless team in the league.

This wasn't supposed to be a multi-year rebuild. The Raiders didn't hire 74-year-old Pete Carroll, one of only three coaches to win both a Super Bowl and a college national championship, to manage a long slog back up the standings. He was supposed to restore the team to competitiveness and then hand them off with a solid foundation in place. Conversely, Carroll is facing the prospect of being one-and-done in Vegas, and the Raiders are looking at another reboot.

Organizational Turmoil

This is not all Brady's fault, of course. The majority owner is still the majority owner. Davis has churned through coaches and front-office heads at a speed that would make even the Jets blush. The Raiders are on their seventh coach and fifth general manager in 15 years, a turnover rate that has erased any clear strategic direction. Nevertheless, it's Brady's fingerprints that are evident throughout this iteration of the Raiders. "This is the Tom Brady show," league reporter a prominent journalist said last summer. "He's been deeply engaged," Carroll stated of Brady at his introductory news conference in January. "This is his chance to leave his mark on a team."

Brady was responsible for the key hires and placed the Raiders on this directionless path. He hired John Spytek, his college buddy and co-worker in Tampa, to act as GM. He greenlit a team strategy to the coach's specifications, including dealing a third-round pick for Geno Smith and drafting a RB No 6 overall despite having a poor-performing offensive line. He lured an offensive innovator away from the college ranks, making him the highest-paid offensive coordinator in the league. And he approved handing a flaky offensive line – the foundation for that coach and ball carrier – to Carroll's son.

Catastrophic Results

It's been a complete failure. The previous year's Raiders were a four-win team, but they were competitive and competitive. This year's Raiders are a disorganized situation. Carroll has implemented an old-fashioned defensive philosophy, the quarterback looks washed and the Raiders' blocking unit has submarined any hopes for Ashton Jeanty and the ground attack. If nothing else, Carroll was supposed to bring enthusiasm. But the Raiders were uninspired on Sunday, waiting for the plays to the end of the game.

The contrast with Cleveland was stark. The situation often seems dire with the Browns, but there are embers of hope. Myles Garrett, now just five sacks away from the league all-time mark, leads a formidable defense. And there is positive outlook around the impressive first-year players that includes multiple promising talents – a dynamic runner at running back and a skilled defender at linebacker. There is also Shedeur Sanders, who may not be The Answer at quarterback, but who is An Answer in the short-term.

Granted, it was facing the Raiders' defensive unit, but Sanders showed that the stage was not too big for him. With a complete preparation period to prepare, he was effective, accepting what the defense gave him and showing glimpses of creativity. Sanders became the first Cleveland rookie QB to win his first start since 1995.

Absence of Direction

Sanders and the rest of the Browns' rookie class represent future potential. That's a mirror the Raiders should avoid. Successful franchises recognize their situation in the league hierarchy: you're either a championship candidate, a competitive squad, or rebuilding. Vegas entered 2025 believing they were a couple of moves away from competitiveness. In spite of the overwhelming evidence to the contrary, they failed to adjust midstream. Similar to the Browns, Vegas should be throwing out young players to discover what they have for the future. But only two first-year players have seen real playing time. There has reportedly already been disagreement between the coaches and the front office regarding the lack of action for two rookie offensive linemen, despite the o-line being a sieve. Rookie receivers Jack Bech and Dont'e Thornton Jr have combined for nine catches in 11 games, despite the lack of spark in the passing game. Carroll continues to roll out experienced veterans on defense over rookies in need of experience.

Unclear Future

What is the future direction? Will the coach return or the GM or Smith? And who truly decides those decisions, Brady or Davis? How can a team operate when its primary influencer logs in occasionally, signs off franchise-altering moves, and then disappears on side quests?

It's going to be a struggle for the Raiders to improve – and they are in a conference stacked with perennial playoff contenders. Meanwhile, other reconstructing teams have paths. The New York Jets are stocked with upcoming selections. The Titans and Giants have promising young quarterbacks. The Raiders have little to build upon. No core. No franchise QB. No identity. No plan.

The single factor more dangerous than being bad in the NFL is not knowing you're underperforming. The Raiders don't know where they are, what they are developing, or who will call the shots in the summer.

Tom Brady once excelled at football through intense dedication. The Raiders could use more than an hour of it.