The Las Vegas Raiders may not have had a dog in the fight between the Detroit Lions and Washington Commanders, but Jayden Daniels' upset of the 15-2 No. 1 seed may end up indirectly aiding them in their latest head coaching search.
With Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, who has become the top name on the coaching market after leading his team to a 33.2 points per game average this season, now out of the playoff mix, nothing is stopping any team with a head coaching vacancy from snatching him up.
According to the latest reports from Adam Schefter, teams in need of a new coach could start to wrap things up as soon as this week, especially now that Johnson is on the market. Schefter hints that Johnson is the first domino to fall, and his hiring will set off chain reactions across the league.
If the Raiders are as obsessed with hiring Johnson as it appears they are, and Johnson is willing to spurn better quarterback situations to make the trip to Las Vegas, the Raiders may end up securing their next leading man and shocking the rest of the football world.
Latest Adam Schefter report suggests Raiders could hire Ben Johnson by end of week
Both Johnson and Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn are expected to earn head coaching jobs in this cycle. Johnson may be the biggest fish on the market, which would make it quite a coup for the Raiders to land him over other, perhaps more attractive from the outside, job openings.
Johnson also has some reported interest in the Chicago Bears and Jacksonville Jaguars vacancies, which would give him the chance to either help mold Caleb Williams into a star or use Trevor Lawrence to compete in what is a very weak division. The Raiders' quarterback situation is much worse than either of those spots.
Johnson appears to be interested in the pull of Tom Brady and the power he could have. With the Raiders interviewing Commanders assistant GM Lance Newmark, who spent most of the last three decades in Detroit, there could be even more gasoline poured on the Johnson fire.
After a few weeks of speculation, it seems like the Raiders will finally end up picking their next franchise leader. Of the smoke about Johnson is real, the most cutting-edge offensive mind in the game will be wearing silver and black quite soon,