After a defeat to Detroit Lions saw their record fall to 3-5, the Las Vegas Raiders have fired head coach Josh McDaniels and general manager David Ziegler.
Club owner Mark Davis said in a statement, "After much thought about what the Raiders need to move forward, I have decided to part ways with Josh and Dave. I want to thank them both for their hard work and wish them and their families nothing but the best."
McDaniels was midway through his second season on the job, having signed a six-year deal in January 2022.
The Raiders went 6-11 last year. This season, their three wins have come against opponents that currently have losing records. the Denver Broncos, Green Bay Packers and New England Patriots.
McDaniels was an assistant coach at New England from 2001 to 2008 before an unsuccessful stint as the Broncos' head coach (8-8 in 2009, 3-9 when he was fired in 2010).
He spent the 2011 season as the St. Louis Rams' offensive coordinator, then returned to work under Bill Belichick as the Patriots' offensive coordinator from 2012 to 2021.
Ziegler worked in the New England front office from 2013 to 2021, including stints as director of pro personnel and director of player personnel.
The Raiders have promoted linebacker coach Antonio Pierce to interim head coach.
Pierce, 45, is in his second season with the Raiders after working as an associate head coach, defensive coordinator and linebacker coach at Arizona State from 2018-21.
He played linebacker in the NFL for nine seasons with Washington (2001-04) and the New York Giants (2005-09), making the Pro Bowl in 2006, helping the Giants win Super Bowl XLII and retiring with 691 tackles, nine sacks and seven interceptions in 124 games (94 starts).
"The Las Vegas Raiders are committed to undergo a comprehensive search for a head coach once the season is complete," the team said in a statement.
Pierce will make his coaching debut against one of his former teams when the Raiders (3-5) host the Giants (2-6) on Sunday.
The Raiders also reportedly parted with offensive coordinator Mick Lombardi on Wednesday. Las Vegas has not yet scored more than 19 points in a game this season. Lombardi and McDaniels were responsible for play-calling.
Multiple reports indicated that Sunday's game could also see rookie quarterback Aidan O'Connell take over for the erratic Jimmy Garoppolo.
O'Connell, 25, a fourth-round pick out of Purdue, started the Raiders' Week 4 road loss to the Los Angeles Chargers when Garoppolo was out with a concussion. In Week 7, O'Connell relieved starter Brian Hoyer in a road loss to the Chicago Bears when Garoppolo was sidelined by a back injury.
Garoppolo has thrown an NFL-high nine interceptions in six starts this season, completing 65.5 percent of his passes for 1,205 yards and seven touchdowns.
Meanwhile, Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell plans to push for Kirk Cousins to return to the team in 2024.
Cousins, in the final year of his existing contract, could test free agency if he fully recovers from the season-ending ruptured Achilles tendon sustained in Sunday's win over the Green Bay Packers. The 35-year-old Cousins was playing on a one-year, $35 million deal in 2023.
"Yeah, you guys know how I feel about Kirk. Kirk knows how I feel about Kirk," O'Connell said. "I think he was playing as well as anybody in the National Football League and one of the hardest parts about coping with this, the fact that he was experiencing his best season in the National Football League and where we could have gone as a team.
"Hopefully, we are still going to get to that place. But I know without Kirk Cousins and that high-level quarterback play we were getting from him week in and week out, it's going to be a challenge, but one that we've got to accept and try to thrive."
The Vikings are preparing rookie Jaren Hall to start this week and acquired Joshua Dobbs from the Arizona Cardinals on Tuesday.
Cousins helped Minnesota get to 4-4 in a dramatic U-turn to the season following an 0-3 start. He leads the NFL with 216 pass completions, was tied for the league lead with 18 touchdown passes and had five interceptions with a 103.8 passer rating (third in the NFL).
