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Tom Brady dedicated over two decades to a unwavering objective: establishing himself as the greatest quarterback in league history. He achieved that goal. Now, in retirement, Brady has ventured into numerous endeavors. He serves as a commentator for Fox. He's involved in development ventures in Birmingham. He has endorsed cryptocurrency. He's expanding the NFL to the Middle East. He maintains a popular YouTube channel. He even cloned his dog. Brady's retirement activities appear either diverse or unfocused, based on your viewpoint.

Side projects are one thing. But overseeing a professional franchise is hardly a casual commitment. Alongside his other roles, Brady also serves as the unofficial decision-maker for the Las Vegas franchise, presently the least successful team in the league.

The Raiders dropped to 2–9 on this past weekend after enduring a 24-10 defeat to the Cleveland Browns. The Raiders didn't just get defeated; they were embarrassed by a underperforming team with a QB making his first NFL start. The Raiders' offensive unit averaged less than three yards per play before garbage-time plays in the final period. Their quarterback was sacked 10 times and was pressured 46 times, a single-game high for any team this year. On the defensive side, Las Vegas allowed significant gains to a Cleveland offensive unit that has been dysfunctional for most of the campaign. Any way you slice it, it was a comprehensive beatdown. At least Brady didn't have to witness it. The architect of this latest Vegas mess was sitting in Dallas on the network coverage for Eagles-Cowboys.

A Series of Questionable Choices

To be fair to Brady, he has only spent one season leading the team's football decisions, becoming a partial stakeholder of the franchise in 2024. But he was accountable for every significant move last offseason, and each one has backfired. Those moves have left the Raiders as the most unwatchable and directionless team in the league.

This wasn't supposed to be a multi-year rebuild. The Raiders didn't appoint veteran coach Pete Carroll, one of only three coaches to win both a Super Bowl and a college national championship, to oversee a protracted process back up the standings. He was expected to restore the team to competitiveness and then transition them with a stable base in place. Conversely, Carroll is facing the prospect of being one-and-done in Vegas, and the Raiders are looking at another reboot.

Organizational Dysfunction

This isn't all Brady's fault, of course. The majority owner is still the controlling stakeholder. Davis has cycled through head coaches and executives at a speed that would make even the New York Jets blush. The Raiders are on their seventh coach and fifth general manager in 15 years, a instability that has eliminated any clear strategic direction. Nevertheless, it's Brady's fingerprints that are evident throughout this iteration of the Raiders. "This is the Brady's project," league reporter a prominent journalist commented last summer. "He's been integrally involved," Carroll stated of Brady at his first press conference in January. "This is his chance to leave his mark on a franchise."

Brady was responsible for the key hires and placed the Raiders on this directionless path. He appointed John Spytek, his college buddy and co-worker in Tampa, to serve as GM. He approved a roster plan to Carroll's preference, including trading a draft selection for Geno Smith and selecting a RB with the sixth pick despite having a bottom-tier O-line. He recruited an offensive innovator away from the NCAA, making him the highest-paid OC in the league. And he approved handing a unreliable blocking unit – the foundation for that coach and running back – to Carroll's son.

Catastrophic Results

It has become a disaster. The previous year's Raiders were a four-win team, but they were competitive and resilient. This year's Raiders are a disorganized situation. Carroll has installed an outdated defensive philosophy, Smith looks past his prime and the Raiders' blocking unit has submarined any aspirations for their rookie and the ground attack. At the very least, Carroll was expected to bring energy. But the Raiders were lifeless on Sunday, counting down the plays to the conclusion 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 single-season record, leads a formidable defense. And there is optimism around the impressive first-year players that includes multiple promising talents – Quinshon Judkins at running back and Carson Schwesinger at linebacker. There is also the rookie QB, who may not be the permanent solution at quarterback, but who is An Answer in the immediate future.

Admittedly, it was against the Raiders' defense, but Sanders demonstrated that the NFL level was not overwhelming for him. With a complete preparation period to get ready, he was effective, accepting what the defense gave him and displaying glimpses of improvisation. Sanders became the first Cleveland rookie QB to win his first start since 1995.

Absence of Vision

The rookie quarterback and his classmates of the Browns' first-year players represent future potential. That's a reflection the Raiders should avoid. Good organizations recognize their position in the league hierarchy: you're either a contender, a frisky playoff team, or undergoing reconstruction. Vegas entered 2025 thinking they were a couple of moves away from respectability. In spite of the clear indications otherwise, they haven't pivoted midstream. Similar to the Browns, Vegas should be playing young players to find out what they have for the coming years. But only two rookies have seen significant action. There has reportedly already been disagreement between the coaching staff and the front office regarding the lack of action for two young blockers, despite the offensive line being a sieve. Rookie receivers two young talents have combined for nine receptions in 11 games, despite the ineffectiveness in the aerial attack. Carroll continues to utilize grizzled vets on the defensive side over rookies in need of reps.

Uncertain Future

What is the path forward? Will Carroll be back or the GM or Smith? And who truly decides those decisions, Brady or Davis? How can a franchise function when its primary influencer logs in occasionally, approves franchise-altering moves, and then disappears on other projects?

It will prove a challenge for the Raiders to improve – and they are in a conference filled with consistently successful teams. At the same time, other reconstructing teams have clear trajectories. The Jets are stocked with upcoming selections. The Tennessee and New York have promising young quarterbacks. The Raiders have little to build upon. No core. No quarterback. No distinctive style. No strategic vision.

The single factor more problematic than being ineffective in the NFL is not recognizing you're bad. The Raiders don't know where they are, what they are developing, or who will make decisions in the summer.

Tom Brady once mastered football through intense dedication. The Raiders could use more than limited attention of it.