Dark Times in the NFL as Fired Raiders HC Josh McDaniel Faces the Heat Over ‘Fragile Ego’

Things are getting worse and terrible for the ex-Raiders head coach, Josh McDaniels. Days after he was fired from the franchise, some horrifying details from his time with the Broncos have unfolded. Broncos ex-tight end Nate Jackson has dropped bombshells in his recent article about McDaniels.

Jackson played for the Broncos for six seasons, from 2003 to 2009. His Broncos career was effectively ended in 2009 under McDaniels, but he was not the only one. The footballer-turned-writer has revealed sickening stories from the Josh era lately. From “Bill Belichick wannabe” to firing players over “fragile ego,” Jackson attacked the Broncos’ former head coach in a no-holds-barred account.

Bombshells dropped on Josh McDaniels’ Broncos stint

McDaniels joined the Broncos in 2009 and was fired the next season. But a lot happened during that time that guarantees to bring the dark side of the NFL. On paper, McDaniels started 6-0 in his first season and walked the exit after a 3-9 fallout the following year. Nothing extraordinary here. But Jackson has revealed what happened behind the scenes during that time, and it’s hard to believe.

According to reports, McDaniels treated the players like kids and promised rewards for participating in the practice squad. But this is just the beginning, and things only get serious from here. The coach reportedly felt “uncomfortable” with the Broncos’ talented offensive players Jay Cutler, Brandon Marshall, and Tony Scheffler, who were products of previous 2x Super Bowl-winning head coach Mike Shanahan.

Former offensive tackle Tyler Polumbus, who played under both coaches, revealed the bizarre comment McDaniels made following his trade of the trio, “Fellas, don’t worry about the quarterback situation. I can turn a high school quarterback into an All-Pro,” Jackson wrote.

Things worsened when McDaniels believed a rumor about his wife, Laura, liking Peyton Hillis. He proceeded to fire the RB without any proof or further discussion. McDaniels was also known to emulate the Patriots‘ Bill Belichick. He wrote giant mantras in capital letters all over the facilities and made his players recite those. He reportedly cussed the players who had a bad day, shouted at entities in the team meetings in Bill Belichick’s manner, and had zero to show for all that drama in the results.

On top of everything, McDaniels ruined a 2x Super Bowl side assembled by Shanahan and turned them into the group finishers. Jackson has revealed these stories from the Broncos’ troubled McDaniels era.

The once-feared Broncos were laughable under the HC’s tenure, and the owners had enough after a 3-9 in the 2010 regular season. McDaniels was replaced by John Fox after ruining multiple illustrious careers in one year, including that of Nate Jackson.

Read More: Raiders Shell Out Millions to Dismiss Josh McDaniels as Head Coach

But things have not changed much after a decade. McDaniels has been forced out of his coaching tenure with some terrible statistics once again.

Josh McDaniels as the Raiders HC, an even worse repetition of the Broncos

Although nearly not as bad as his Broncos shenanigans, McDaniels’ Raiders stint was far worse statistically. He set a couple of franchise records during his 21-month stay, unfortunately for the wrong reasons. The Raiders gave away a 20-point lead against the Cardinals in 2022, the highest in the franchise’s history.

A few weeks later, the Raiders again fumbled a double-digit lead over the Rams and their two days’ QB Baker Mayfield, who did not even have a proper practice session with the team. Something similar also happened in the current season, when the Bears‘ undrafted rookie Tyson Bagent threw for 162 yards, 21/29, and one touchdown as the 1-5 Bears trounced McDaniels’ side.

Keeping all these in mind, it’s probably not surprising to see why the Raiders rushed to get rid of the HC despite a further $40 million loss. While McDaniels will keep earning his promised amount for the rest of the years, his comeback to the NFL is pretty much over unless some owner finds some serious potential or sympathy, or probably both, in him.

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