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Tom Brady committed 23 NFL seasons to a unwavering mission: becoming the greatest quarterback in league history. He accomplished that dream. Today, in his post-playing career, Brady has explored numerous pursuits. He serves as a commentator for a major network. He's engaged 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 replicated his family pet. Brady's post-career ventures appear either eclectic or unfocused, depending on your viewpoint.

Side projects are understandable. But overseeing a professional franchise is hardly a casual commitment. In addition to his various responsibilities, Brady functions as the de facto decision-maker for the Las Vegas franchise, presently the least successful team in the NFL.

The Raiders fell to 2–9 on this past weekend after suffering a 24-10 defeat to the Cleveland Browns. The Raiders didn't just lose; they were humiliated by a underperforming team with a quarterback making his first NFL start. The Raiders' offense averaged 2.9 yards per play before garbage-time action in the fourth quarter. Their quarterback was tackled 10 times and faced pressure 46 times, a season record for any franchise this year. On the defensive side, Las Vegas allowed big plays to a Cleveland offensive unit that has been ineffective for most of the season. Any way you slice it, it was a comprehensive beatdown. Fortunately Brady didn't have to watch. The primary decision-maker of this current situation was working in Dallas on the network coverage for another game.

A Collection of Questionable Decisions

In fairness to Brady, he has only been involved for a year leading the team's football decisions, after becoming a partial stakeholder of the organization in 2024. But he was accountable for every major decision last offseason, and each one has backfired. Those moves have left the Raiders as the least entertaining and directionless franchise in the NFL.

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 championship and a college national championship, to manage a protracted process back up the standings. He was expected to restore the team to competitiveness and then hand them off with a solid foundation in place. Instead, Carroll is staring at the possibility of being fired after one season in Vegas, and the Raiders are looking at another reboot.

Organizational Dysfunction

This is not entirely Brady's responsibility, 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 New York Jets feel embarrassed. The Raiders are on their seventh head coach and fifth GM in 15 years, a instability that has erased any clear strategic direction. Still, 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 said last summer. "He's been integrally involved," Carroll said of Brady at his introductory news conference in January. "This is his opportunity to put his stamp on a team."

Brady made the key hires and set the Raiders on this rudderless course. He hired a close associate, his former teammate and co-worker in Tampa, to act as general manager. He approved a team strategy to Carroll's preference, including dealing a third-round pick for Smith and drafting a RB No 6 overall despite having a poor-performing offensive line. He recruited an offensive innovator away from the NCAA, making him the highest-paid OC in the league. And he approved handing a flaky offensive line – the foundation for that coordinator and ball carrier – to Carroll's son.

Disastrous Results

It has become a complete failure. Last season's Raiders were a four-win team, but they were competitive and competitive. The current Raiders are a confused mess. Carroll has installed an outdated defensive philosophy, the quarterback looks past his prime and the Raiders' blocking unit has submarined any hopes for Ashton Jeanty and the run game. If nothing else, Carroll was supposed to bring energy. But the Raiders were uninspired on Sunday, waiting for the snaps to the conclusion of the game.

The difference with Cleveland was stark. The situation often seems dire with the Browns, but there are glimmers of optimism. Their star defender, now just five quarterback takedowns away from the NFL all-time mark, leads a formidable defense. And there is positive outlook around the stellar-looking first-year players that includes multiple promising talents – a dynamic runner at RB and Carson Schwesinger at LB. There is also the rookie QB, who may not be The Answer 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 too big for him. With a complete preparation period to prepare, he was effective, taking what the opposition gave him and showing glimpses of creativity. Sanders became the first Browns rookie quarterback to win his first start since 1995.

Absence of Vision

Sanders and the rest of the Browns' rookie class symbolize promise. That's a reflection the Raiders don't want to look into. Successful franchises 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. Despite the clear indications otherwise, they failed to adjust midstream. Similar to the Browns, Vegas should be playing young players to find out what they have for the coming years. But only two first-year players have seen real playing time. There has reportedly already been disagreement between the coaching staff and the front office regarding the limited playing time for two rookie offensive linemen, despite the offensive line being a sieve. First-year pass catchers Jack Bech and Dont'e Thornton Jr have totaled nine receptions in eleven contests, despite the ineffectiveness in the aerial attack. Carroll continues to utilize experienced veterans on the defensive side over young players in need of reps.

Unclear Direction

Where is the path forward? Will Carroll be back or the GM or the quarterback? And who truly decides those choices, Brady or Davis? How can a team operate when its primary influencer participates sporadically, approves franchise-altering moves, and then vanishes on other projects?

It will prove a challenge for the Raiders to get better – and they are in a division filled with consistently successful teams. At the same time, other reconstructing teams have clear trajectories. The Jets are stocked with upcoming selections. The Titans and Giants have talented young QBs. The Raiders have little to build upon. No foundation. No franchise QB. No identity. No plan.

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

Tom Brady once mastered football through ruthless focus. The Raiders could use more than an hour of it.