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Las Vegas Raiders players have made it pretty clear that they did not like former head coach Josh McDaniels, and tight end Michael Mayer is the latest one to express those thoughts.
To be fair, Mayer did not name McDaniels outright, but his recent comments indicate that the second-year player is much more content now that McDaniels is out of town.
“Last year, maybe there were some days I didn’t wanna come in or something was going down — I flipped the script,” Mayer said, via Matt Ehalt of The New York Post.
Mayer added that he is “way happier” and “more positive.”
“It’s time to dig down, play some ball, win some ball games and do what I need to do for this team,” said Mayer. “Rookie year is over. That’s way in the past. I’ve already reflected on it, I’ve already put it behind me, I don’t even think about it anymore.”
The Raiders went just 3-5 under McDaniels last season. He was fired and replaced by Antonio Pierce midway through the year, and Las Vegas proceeded to go 5-4 the rest of the way.
Mayer caught 27 passes for 304 yards and a couple of touchdowns in 2023.
What will Michael Mayer’s role for the Raiders be in 2024?
Mayer probably wasn’t too thrilled watching the NFL Draft last month, as the Raiders selected fellow tight end Brock Bowers with the 13th overall pick.
Many felt that Las Vegas would end up taking a quarterback, but all six of the first-round talents at the position flew off the board before the Raiders were on the clock. In theory, Las Vegas could have traded up, but it didn’t seem to make a concerted effort to do so. Not that we know of, anyway.
So, just what will Mayer’s role be now that Bowers is in tow?
Well, he instantly becomes the second-most talented tight end on the roster, which is never a good thing.
Bowers is considered by many to be a generational prospect, and some even labeled him the best football player in this year’s draft class.
Of course, the Raiders can always run two tight end sets in order to get Mayer some looks, but it’s not like Las Vegas is a pass-heavy offense to begin with. Especially not with the club’s current situation under center.
Aidan O’Connell will probably begin the 2024 campaign as the Raiders’ starting quarterback, but he surely doesn’t have a very long leash with Gardner Minshew waiting in the wings. O’Connell did show some promise at the end of last season, but he hasn’t really demonstrated he is anything more than a game manager at this point.
That doesn’t exactly spell great news for Mayer, who struggled to find a niche in Vegas during his rookie year and will now almost surely be second on the depth chart behind Bowers.
Perhaps the Raiders will find a creative way to employ Mayer come September, or maybe Mayer’s future is not in Las Vegas.
Regardless, the 22-year-old is obviously more relaxed now that he can enter training camp knowing that McDaniels is no longer around.
More must-reads:
- One-time Defensive Player of the Year open to reunion with former team
- Free-agent DB Stephon Gilmore addresses playing future
- The 'Multiple seasons with 2000+ scrimmage yards' quiz
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