Josh McDaniels continues to fill out his coaching staff with the Las Vegas Raiders, and for the most part, he has done so with people he has worked with in the past. Offensive coordinator Mick Lombardi and defensive coordinator Patrick Graham have ties with the Patriots while McDaniels was there.
But the rest of the coaching staff is essential as well, and it is imperative to get different voices in the room to come together and figure out the best way to attack things. Someone who has been around the game for a long time and has seen everything to see is Rob Ryan, someone who Raiders fans are familiar with.
Now it looks as if Ryan will be making a return to the franchise as ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that the Raiders will be hiring Ryan as a Senior Defensive Assistant:
Former Ravens’ LB coach Rob Ryan is being hired as the Senior Defensive Assistant with the Las Vegas Raiders, per sources. Ryan is now back with the Raiders, where he once served five years as their defensive coordinator.
As Schefter noted, Ryan previously spent five seasons with the Raiders as the team’s defensive coordinator from 2004 until 2008. Those were admittedly some forgettable years for the franchise as a whole and the defense, like the rest of the team, struggled under Ryan. The Raiders never won more than five games during that stint, and the team ranked in the bottom third of the league in yards and points allowed in four of those five seasons.
But Ryan has had some impressive seasons, helping both the Dallas Cowboys and New Orleans Saints to some impressive defensive seasons with him at the helm. Last season, Ryan served as linebackers coach for the Baltimore Ravens.
Like most of the coaching staff, Ryan does have a bit of history with McDaniels though it was a long time ago as Ryan was the linebackers coach for the New England Patriots from 2000 to 2003 when McDaniels worked for the Patriots as a defensive assistant.
