3 reasons why Raiders fans should be hyped after hiring Tom Telesco as their GM
It appears that the Las Vegas Raiders have a new general manager in former Los Angeles Chargers executive Tom Telesco, according to the NFL Network's Ian Rapoport on Tuesday.
As another piece of the Raiders' offseason puzzle has been completed, Telesco's work will now begin with coach Antonio Pierce to help turn the organization into a force again.
While there have been some fans who are against the hiring due to how his time in L.A. ended, others are more bullish on what Telesco can do in Vegas.
Here are three reasons why Raiders fans should be excited about the hire of Tom Telesco.
Three reasons to be excited about Tom Telesco
#3, Know-how of the AFC West
Having been with the Los Angeles Chargers for over a decade, Telesco will no doubt have a keen sense of what it takes to usurp Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs.
While he didn't get it done with L.A., Teleso certainly did his part by giving Brandon Staley plenty of pieces, but the coach wasn't able to.
Having a general manager who is already familiar with the teams and division is a plus.
#2, Good in the NFL draft
Some fans might scoff at this, but Telesco has had some hits in the draft for the Chargers.
Names like Joey Bosa, Keenan Allen, Hunter Henry, Mike Williams, Derwin James Jr., Justin Herbert, Rashawn Slater, Asante Samuel Jr. and Zion Johnson all came to L.A. under Telesco's watch.
Having been with the Chargers since 2013, that is a decent sample size of how Tom Telesco built through the draft and got some genuine superstars in the ranks.
#1, Tom Telesco can build a playoff-caliber team
While the Chargers were 2-3 in the postseason and had six winning seasons when Telesco was in L.A., he built a team capable of getting it done in the playoffs.
With the likes of Herbert, Bosa and James, Telesco also supplemented the draft picks by bringing in free agents.
Khalil Mack was a big name, and so too were J.C Jackson and even Kyle Van Noy, who were both brought in for the 2022 season. So, he does have the ability to go after big free agents to help his team, and he could follow a similar path with the Raiders.
With some good pieces already in Vegas, Tom Telesco has the potential to build a strong roster for the Raiders as they try to take the AFC West crown from Patrick Mahomes.