Tom Brady now at center of Raiders controversy, insider says

The Las Vegas Raiders’ season was supposed to be a reset. Instead, the team is spiraling, and now league insiders are openly questioning who is really steering the ship in Vegas.

Following a deflating Week 12 loss to the Cleveland Browns, the Raiders initiated a swift shake-up of their offensive unit. Offensive coordinator Chip Kelly and senior offensive assistant Bob Bicknell were dismissed within 24 hours of the defeat, a clear signal that the organization has reached its breaking point with the unit’s lack of production.

Yet for some analysts, the firings don’t address the root of the problem.

Florio: “This falls on Tom Brady.”

NBC Sports’ Mike Florio made some controversial comments on Monday when he suggested the team’s issues extend far beyond a struggling offense or mismatched coaching staff. During Pro Football Talk Live, Florio argued that Tom Brady himself bears major responsibility for the Raiders’ missteps, despite not officially holding a controlling stake in the franchise.

“Mark Davis is doing whatever he tells him,” Florio said, asserting that Brady has exerted significant influence over major decisions since entering the organization as a minority partner.

According to Florio, that influence includes:

• The hiring of Pete Carroll, the veteran Super Bowl–winning coach brought in to help stabilize the team
• The recruitment of Chip Kelly, now fired after a stagnant offensive performance
• The decision to sign Geno Smith, the veteran quarterback who has struggled to spark the offense

“It’s just not working,” Florio added bluntly. “Tom, you want to do this, but you can’t clone yourself… If this doesn’t work, the blame falls on you.”

At the time Brady joined the Raiders organization, optimism was high. His reputation for excellence and his well-documented history with head coach Pete Carroll as an admired competitor were seen as a stabilizing force for a volatile franchise.

Instead, the Raiders are underperforming across the board. The offense has been disjointed, inconsistent, and prone to costly mistakes. Geno Smith has struggled to find rhythm behind a patchy offensive line. Carroll’s defense has shown flashes, but hasn’t been enough to compensate for offensive lapses.

The coaching dismissals highlight the urgency inside the building, but they also raise the question of whether these moves are more about meaningful change, or damage control for bigger decisions that went wrong months ago.

The franchise now faces a crossroads. With Carroll still at the helm and Smith still under center, the Raiders must decide whether they believe the current structure can salvage the season or whether deeper changes are inevitable this offseason.

For now, the lingering storyline isn’t just the losses. It’s the growing perception that Tom Brady, even while juggling his FOX broadcast responsibilities, now sits at the center of the Raiders’ identity crisis. And fair or not, as long as the team continues to slide, the spotlight, along the blame, will only intensify.

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