As bad as things have been for the Las Vegas Raiders during the 2025 NFL season, somehow, other teams are going through much worse. The Tennessee Titans fired head coach Brian Callahan after a Week 6 loss to Las Vegas, which was both a badge of honor and a backhanded compliment.
The New York Giants also fired head coach Brian Daboll after a Week 10 loss to the Chicago Bears, which could have a ripple effect for the Silver and Black. Not only does it add intrigue to the Week 17 matchup between the two teams, but Daboll could also be a candidate to replace Chip Kelly.
But there is a third piece of fallout that Raider Nation has not considered, which is that another one of their coordinators could be in a position to take the Giants' head coaching job. If New York does want to poach Patrick Graham from Las Vegas, however, the Raiders would benefit in a wild way.
Raiders could cash in if Giants want Patrick Graham as their HC
First, to lay the groundwork, it should be understood that Graham has been an exceptional defensive coordinator for the Silver and Black. Statistically, his units may not blow the average fan away, but he's done the best with what he's had.
Not only have the Raiders, in general, been very incompetent during his four-year stint with the team, but he hasn't gotten much help from the offense, and the front office has failed to use its resources well to adequately assist him.
Players like Chandler Jones and Christian Wilkins were massive wastes of money, and Graham has had to watch players like Tre'Von Moehrig, Robert Spillane, Nate Hobbs and Amik Robertson all leave in free agency.
Plus, the decisions to select Tyree Wilson over Christian Gonzalez and Byron Young over, well, the other Byron Young, in the NFL Draft have caught up to the defense. This year, Graham is essentially trotting out Maxx Crosby and a handful of aging veterans and reclamation projects.
Still, the Raiders' defense has largely played well in 2025. Graham has also helped players like Spillane, Eric Stokes, Jack Jones, Jamal Adams and Denzel Perryman all find new life in the NFL. All that is to say that Graham should be coveted by other franchises around the league, like the Giants.
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In fact, in recent years, he has been. Back in 2022, before the Giants hired Daboll, they interviewed Graham for their head coaching position. After spending two years as the defensive coordinator there, Daboll even initially retained Graham on the staff before he darted to Las Vegas.
So, general manager Joe Schoen already knows Graham. Plus, he was a finalist for the Jacksonville Jaguars' head coaching position last year, and the Los Angeles Chargers even wanted to interview him before they hired Jim Harbaugh in 2024.
Simply put, Graham is well-respected around the league, as he has also interviewed for other defensive coordinator positions. Even if it is a long shot, Raiders fans can dream. This current coaching staff is likely to be blown up in the next few years anyway if their struggles persist.
If Graham did take the head coaching job in New York, not only would he become the first Raiders coordinator to take a head coaching job elsewhere in the NFL, but Las Vegas would get several third-round compensatory picks because Graham would be a minority coordinator landing a head job.
A similar situation unfolded for the San Francisco 49ers when defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans took over as the head coach of the Houston Texans. The 49ers were awarded a third-round pick for his departure in each of the next three drafts, which would be a wild benefit for the Raiders.
Again, it is not likely that Graham will become the next head coach of the New York Giants. But based on how things are going in Las Vegas, and what the return could be for Graham taking the job, Raider Nation should at least be excited about the prospect of this happening. After all, Graham deserves it.