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Tom Brady dedicated over two decades to a unwavering objective: becoming the greatest quarterback in NFL history. He achieved that dream. Today, in his post-playing career, Brady has explored numerous endeavors. He serves as a broadcaster for a major network. He's involved in development ventures in the UK. He has endorsed digital assets. He's expanding American football to Saudi Arabia. He maintains a successful YouTube channel. He replicated his family pet. Brady's retirement activities appear either diverse or unfocused, depending on your perspective.

Side projects are one thing. But managing a NFL team is hardly a part-time job. In addition to his various responsibilities, Brady also serves as the de facto decision-maker for the Las Vegas franchise, presently the most hapless team in the NFL.

The Raiders fell to 2–9 on Sunday after enduring 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 professional debut. The Raiders' offense averaged less than three yards per play before meaningless plays in the final period. Their quarterback was sacked 10 times and faced pressure 46 times, a season record for any team this season. On the defensive side, Las Vegas allowed significant gains to a Cleveland offensive unit that has been dysfunctional for the majority of the campaign. However you analyze it, it was a comprehensive beatdown. Fortunately Brady didn't have to watch. The primary decision-maker of this latest Vegas mess was sitting in Dallas on the Fox broadcast for Eagles-Cowboys.

A Series of Dubious Choices

In fairness to Brady, he has only spent one season guiding the team's personnel choices, becoming a minority owner of the franchise in 2024. But he was responsible for every significant move last offseason, and all of them has backfired. Those moves have left the Raiders as the most unwatchable and aimless team in the league.

This wasn't supposed to be a lengthy reconstruction. The Raiders didn't appoint veteran coach Pete Carroll, one of only three coaches to win both a championship and a NCAA title, to oversee a protracted process back up the league table. He was supposed to restore the team to competitiveness and then transition them with a solid foundation in place. Conversely, Carroll is staring at the prospect of being fired after one season in Vegas, and the Raiders are looking at another reboot.

Organizational Dysfunction

This is not all Brady's fault, naturally. The majority owner is still the controlling stakeholder. Davis has churned through coaches and executives at a speed that would make even the Jets feel embarrassed. The Raiders are on their seventh head coach and fifth general manager in 15 years, a turnover rate that has erased any coherent long-term vision. Still, it's Brady's influence that are all over this version of the Raiders. "This is the Tom Brady show," league reporter a prominent journalist commented last summer. "He's been integrally involved," Carroll said 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 crucial appointments and placed the Raiders on this rudderless course. He appointed a close associate, his college buddy and co-worker in Tampa, to act as general manager. He greenlit a roster plan to the coach's specifications, including trading a third-round pick for Geno Smith and drafting a running back with the sixth pick 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 NFL. And he signed off on entrusting a unreliable offensive line – the bedrock for that coordinator and running back – to Carroll's son.

Disastrous Outcomes

It has become a complete failure. The previous year's Raiders were a four-win team, but they were competitive and competitive. This year's Raiders are a disorganized situation. Carroll has implemented an old-fashioned defensive scheme, Smith looks past his prime and the Raiders' blocking unit has submarined any aspirations for their rookie and the run game. If nothing else, Carroll was supposed to bring energy. But the Raiders were lifeless on Sunday, counting down 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. Myles Garrett, now just five sacks away from the NFL single-season record, leads a formidable defense. And there is optimism around the stellar-looking rookie class that includes two potential stars – a dynamic runner at running back and Carson Schwesinger at LB. There is also the rookie QB, who may not be The Answer at quarterback, but who is a viable option in the immediate future.

Granted, it was facing the Raiders' defensive unit, but Sanders showed that the NFL level was not overwhelming for him. With a full week to prepare, he was effective, taking what the opposition gave him and showing flashes of creativity. Sanders became the first Cleveland rookie QB to win his first start since 1995.

Absence of Vision

Sanders and the rest of the Browns' first-year players symbolize future potential. That's a mirror the Raiders should avoid. Successful franchises recognize their situation in the league hierarchy: you're either a contender, a frisky playoff team, or undergoing reconstruction. Vegas entered 2025 thinking they were a few adjustments away from competitiveness. In spite of the clear indications otherwise, they haven't pivoted midstream. Like Cleveland, Vegas should be playing rookies to discover what they have for the coming years. But only two rookies have seen real playing time. There has reportedly already been disagreement between the coaching staff and the management regarding the limited playing time for two rookie offensive linemen, despite the o-line being a sieve. Rookie receivers two young talents have combined for nine catches in 11 games, despite the ineffectiveness in the passing game. Carroll continues to roll out experienced veterans on the defensive side over young players in need of reps.

Uncertain Future

Where is the future direction? Will Carroll be back or the GM or Smith? And who truly decides those decisions, Brady or Davis? How can a team function when its most powerful decision-maker logs in occasionally, signs off franchise-altering moves, and then vanishes on other projects?

It's going to be a challenge for the Raiders to improve – and they are in a division stacked with perennial playoff contenders. At the same time, other rebuilders have paths. The New York Jets are stocked with upcoming selections. The Titans and Giants have promising young quarterbacks. The Raiders have little to build upon. No foundation. No quarterback. No identity. No strategic vision.

The single factor more problematic than being ineffective in the NFL is not recognizing you're bad. The Raiders lack clarity on where they are, what they are developing, or who will make decisions in the offseason.

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