Raiders owner Mark Davis announced the firing of head coach Josh McDaniels and GM Dave Ziegler late last night, "about 24 hours after the Raiders' latest -- and final -- embarrassing performance under their watch." Davis "preached patience with McDaniels and Ziegler" after a 6-11 season a year ago, even with the fan base "growing increasingly frustrated." But the team "has looked undoubtedly worse" this season, starting 3-5 through the first eight weeks. McDaniels and Ziegler -- who were roommates in college and worked together for years with the Patriots -- "insisted they weren’t trying to implement 'the Patriot Way' in the desert publicly," but "their actions said otherwise" ( LAS VEGAS SUN, 10/31 ).
Linebackers coach Antonio Pierce "will take over as interim coach" for the rest of the season. Champ Kelly , the Raiders’ assistant GM, will replace Ziegler "at least for the rest of the season" ( LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL, 10/31 ).
