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Tom Brady dedicated 23 NFL seasons to a singular mission: establishing himself as the greatest quarterback in NFL history. He achieved that goal. Today, in retirement, Brady has explored various endeavors. He works as a broadcaster for a major network. He's involved in construction projects in the UK. He has promoted digital assets. He's spreading American football to the Middle East. He operates a successful YouTube channel. He replicated his dog. Brady's retirement activities appear either diverse or aimless, based on your viewpoint.

Secondary ventures are understandable. But managing a professional franchise is hardly a part-time job. Alongside his other roles, Brady also serves as the unofficial football leader for the Raiders, currently the most hapless team in the league.

The Raiders fell to 2–9 on this past weekend after enduring a 24-10 defeat to the Browns. The Raiders didn't just get defeated; they were embarrassed by a underperforming team with a quarterback making his first NFL start. The Raiders' offense averaged less than three yards per play before garbage-time plays in the fourth quarter. Their quarterback was sacked 10 times and faced pressure 46 times, a season record for any franchise this year. On the defensive side, Las Vegas allowed significant gains to a Cleveland offense that has been dysfunctional for most of the campaign. Any way you slice it, it was a comprehensive beatdown. Fortunately Brady didn't have to watch. The architect of this current situation was working in Dallas on the Fox broadcast for another game.

A Collection of Dubious Decisions

In fairness to Brady, he has only spent one season guiding the team's football decisions, becoming a partial stakeholder of the franchise in 2024. But he was responsible for every significant move last offseason, and all of them has backfired. Those moves have resulted in the Raiders as the least entertaining and aimless franchise in the league.

This wasn't supposed to be a multi-year rebuild. The Raiders didn't appoint veteran coach Pete Carroll, among a select group to win both a championship and a college national championship, to oversee a long slog back up the league table. He was supposed to restore the team to relevance and then hand them off with a stable base in place. Instead, Carroll is facing the possibility of being one-and-done in Vegas, and the Raiders are looking at another restart.

Franchise Turmoil

This isn't all Brady's fault, of course. Mark Davis is still the controlling stakeholder. Davis has churned through head coaches and front-office heads at a rate that would make even the New York Jets blush. The Raiders are on their seventh coach and fifth general manager in 15 years, a turnover rate that has eliminated 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 deeply engaged," Carroll stated of Brady at his introductory news conference in January. "This is his opportunity to leave his mark on a franchise."

Brady made the key hires and placed the Raiders on this rudderless course. He appointed a close associate, his college buddy and colleague in Tampa, to serve as GM. He greenlit a roster plan to the coach's specifications, including trading a draft selection for Smith and selecting a RB No 6 overall despite having a poor-performing O-line. He lured Chip Kelly away from the college ranks, making him the highest-paid offensive coordinator in the league. And he signed off on handing a flaky offensive line – the bedrock for that coach and ball carrier – to Carroll's son.

Catastrophic Outcomes

It has become a disaster. Last season's Raiders were a four-win team, but they were competitive and resilient. The current Raiders are a confused mess. Carroll has installed an old-fashioned defensive philosophy, the quarterback looks washed and the Raiders' blocking unit has undermined any aspirations for Ashton Jeanty and the ground attack. If nothing else, Carroll was expected to bring energy. But the Raiders were lifeless on Sunday, waiting for the plays to the conclusion of the game.

The difference with Cleveland was stark. Things are always bleak with the Browns, but there are glimmers of optimism. Their star defender, now just five quarterback takedowns away from the NFL single-season record, leads a dominant defensive unit. And there is optimism 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 Shedeur Sanders, who may not be The Answer at quarterback, but who is a viable option in the short-term.

Granted, it was against the Raiders' defense, but Sanders showed that the NFL level was not too big for him. With a full week to prepare, he was effective, accepting what the opposition gave him and showing flashes of creativity. Sanders became the first Cleveland rookie QB to win his debut game since 1995.

Lack of Direction

Sanders and the rest of the Browns' first-year players represent future potential. That's a mirror the Raiders should avoid. Good organizations understand their position in the ecosystem: you're either a contender, a frisky playoff team, or rebuilding. Vegas entered 2025 thinking they were a couple of moves away from respectability. Despite the overwhelming evidence to the contrary, they failed to adjust midstream. Similar to the Browns, Vegas should be throwing out young players to discover what they have for the future. But only two rookies have seen significant action. There has apparently already been tension between the coaches and the management regarding the limited playing time for two young blockers, despite the offensive line being a weak point. First-year pass catchers Jack Bech and Dont'e Thornton Jr have combined for nine receptions in 11 games, despite the ineffectiveness in the aerial attack. Carroll continues to roll out grizzled vets on defense over rookies in need of experience.

Uncertain Direction

What is the future direction? Will the coach return or the GM or the quarterback? And who actually makes those decisions, Brady or Davis? How can a franchise function when its primary influencer participates sporadically, signs off major organizational decisions, and then vanishes on side quests?

It's going to be a struggle for the Raiders to get better – and they are in a conference filled with perennial playoff contenders. Meanwhile, other reconstructing teams have paths. The New York Jets are loaded with upcoming selections. The Titans and Giants have promising young quarterbacks. The Raiders have little to build upon. No core. No franchise QB. No distinctive style. No plan.

The single factor more dangerous than being bad in the NFL is not recognizing 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 excelled at football through intense dedication. The Raiders could benefit from more than an hour of it.