The Las Vegas Raiders have had some front office issues for many years. One need look no further back than the last 20 years, where they’ve had two (!) winning seasons during that span (2016, 2021). Plenty of people will blame Al Davis and his son Mark Davis for that and they rightfully deserve their share of the blame. When a team is this bad for this long, it starts at the top.
However, the Raiders have obviously acknowledged that something needs to change and have made decisions accordingly. The latest is the team’s hiring of former Eagles Senior Director of College Scouting to be their new Senior Personnel Executive.
Even just on the surface it seems like a smart move because no one cheats off the stupid kid’s paper during a test. No one goes to the gym and gets workout tips from the out-of-shape, 400-lb. guy. No, you look at who is having success and try to mirror what they are doing and, in this case, bring people into your organization with experience in winning.
Who is Anthony Patch?
Levi Damien of Raiders Wire offers some background into Patch, who even long-time Eagles beat writer Geoff Mosher acknowledges will be sorely missed in the Eagles’ front office.
“Big loss for #Eagles as Patch was with the organization for 23 years and was Howie Roseman’s right-hand man when it came to the NFL Draft,” Mosher tweets.
“Anthony Patch was a part of two Super Bowl Championship teams in Philadelphia,” writes Damien. “In total, Patch had been with the Eagles for 24 years, working his way up from area scout.”
“For a few of those years, Patch worked alongside John Spytek as both were scouts for the Eagles from 2005-09. And now, with Spytek as Raiders new GM, he reached out and got another familiar face to join him in Las Vegas.
“This is considered a great get for the Raiders. Patch was highly respected in the Eagles’ organization. While Howie Roseman gets all the credit for his drafting prowess, Patch was right there to help vet their prospects.”
Raiders making the necessary structural changes
As mentioned previously, moves like this are good news for Raiders fans. Whatever they’ve been doing for the past 20 years isn’t working. Credit to Mark Davis for realizing this, even if this light bulb should have gone off years ago. Better late than never.
Having Tom Brady buy into ownership was a big step in the right direction. Whether you are a fan of Brady’s or not, it doesn’t matter. He’s a proven winner with a famously – notoriously to some – sedulous work ethic. He most likely has more say than your average minority owner.
The team hired Pete Carroll, another proven winner and Super Bowl champion. This isn’t another roll of the dice with an interim coach or young, untested hotshot who had success as a coordinator elsewhere but was never a head coach before. Carroll brings a track record of success and with that, a winning culture.
General manager John Spytek also comes from the Philadelphia Eagles and had success in Tampa Bay as well. He was hired in January and should be a welcomed, fresh voice in the franchise. He knows Patch from his time with the Eagles and wanted to add a proven commodity to the front office. The Eagles are the gold standard franchise in the NFL right now, and the Raiders are wise to want a piece of that. No one wants to raid the Jacksonville Jaguars front office.
Patch is the latest addition to a franchise that knew they had to change their thinking and strategy. Every team seems to want a Howie Roseman in the building and the Raiders just acquired a piece of him.
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post Raiders Make Key Acquisition from Super Bowl Champion Eagles appeared first on Heavy Sports.