The Raiders have a lot riding on coach Josh McDaniels. Can he take Las Vegas to the next level after the team made the playoffs last season?
The answer to that question, in large part, will be found in the red zone. The Raiders struggled in that area under the previous coach, Jon Gruden. The issue continued after Gruden left last season, as Las Vegas’ campaign ended when it couldn’t convert a fourth down play near the goal line.
Even Raiders tight end Darren Waller, who stands 6-foot-6, has fallen short of expectations in the red zone for the silver and black. While appearing on the Bussin’ With The Boys podcast, Waller said there often wasn’t a “clear, defined attack in the red zone” in past years.
Thankfully for Waller and the rest of the Raiders, that apparently isn’t the case with McDaniels, as Waller said he can tell there’s a clear red-zone plan in place for the coming season.
“A lot of times in the past couple years…there wasn’t a clear defined attack in the red zone…that’s in place with Josh” @BussinWTB pic.twitter.com/VFYZzK6Kgv
— Raider Nation Boston (@RaiderNationBOS) August 11, 2022
Waller talked about a plan in the red zone for the team in general, and also for himself, saying, “(The red zone) a big thing for me. There’s no reason why (my big self) shouldn’t be dominating in the red zone at all times, you know?”
I agree with Waller. He’s too good, and too tall, to be a non-factor when it’s time to score a touchdown. The only reason for concern could be his playing status. Waller missed practice again on Thursday with an undisclosed injury. Though all indications are that he’ll be ready to go for Week 1 of the regular season.
As for McDaniels, he has a surplus of weapons to work with inside the opponents’ 20-yard line. In addition to Waller, wide receivers Davante Adams and Hunter Renfrow have each proven to be elite playmakers in the red zone. Running back Josh Jacobs has been effective, too.
We won’t know exactly how McDaniels will fare when it comes to scoring touchdowns with the Raiders, but he has the weapons, and Waller’s enthusiasm is encouraging.
Las Vegas has a while to go before the games count for real, so there’s still time to further refine the attack, starting on Sunday against the Vikings in the Raiders’ second preseason game.
