Raiders 2024 Training Camp Preview: Why Luke Getsy has his work cut out for him in Las Vegas
Luke Getsy is the new offensive coordinator for the Las Vegas Raiders and the 2024 training camp will be his opportunity to leave his mark on the team. But it will be easier said than done because he is in an unenviable position.
He takes on a job where they are arguably in the most disadvantageous position relative to other teams in their division. The AFC West goes through the Kansas City Chiefs, the reigning Super Bowl champions going for a threepeat in 2024.
The Los Angeles Chargers have an elite young quarterback in Justin Herbert and Jim Harbaugh comes back to the NFL fresh from winning the College National Championship. The Denver Broncos have also strengthened by adding rookie quarterback Bo Nix in the first round, with the idea of him being the long-term franchise quarterback.
The offense is arguably the weakest for the Raiders in the division and there isn't much Luke Getsy can do about it. He likely has to rely on Aidan O'Connell, who took over from Jimmy Garoppolo last season. Gardner Minshew is another option but none of that is ideal. He is under a huge amount of pressure and the training camp will be his chance to make sure that he can make a team out of these parts.
Luke Getsy joins Raiders with doubts surrounding him
What makes the job even harder for Luke Getsy are the circumstances surrounding his hiring. Before he was chosen as the offensive coordinator, it was reported that Kliff Kingsbury was the frontrunner. But the latter reportedly backed out and eventually chose the Commanders.
Perhaps he too saw the challenges highlighted above and thought it was too hard a climb. Therefore, Luke Getsy comes into this job knowing he was not the first choice.
The Raiders hired him because they saw the way his Bears team played against them last season when they were defeated 30-12. They also saw him create the best-rushing offense in Chicago in 2022 and the second-best in 2023. He had to adjust to a limited quarterback in Justin Fields there and relied on the run game, something that could be applicable in Las Vegas too if the quarterbacks do not play at an elite level that they have not shown so far.
But he was fired by the Bears because head coach Matt Eberflus did not feel that the offense had developed the way that they had expected. They finished bottom in terms of passing yards in 2022 and were 27th out of 32 in 2023.
Without a player like Justin Fields at the quarterback position, there are doubts whether Getsy would be able to fashion a coherent offense. Trying to prove the naysayers wrong puts even more pressure on him than normally would have been the case.
The one silver lining for Getsy is his coaching past with the Green Bay Packers. He joined them in 2014 and became the wide receivers coach in 2016, just as Davante Adams was taking off and becoming one of the best in the league. They reportedly have a great working relationship.
The receiver joined the Raiders from the Packers to team up with Derek Carr, who was his quarterback in college, only to see the latter depart. Having someone as his coach with whom he has worked earlier will help the player feel at ease in Las Vegas again.
Essentially, what the Raiders are looking for in Getsy is to get their star players going again despite having a mediocre quarterback room. That is the impression one gets from their statement on the website, which mentions:
"Under his guidance, wide receiver D.J. Moore registered career highs in receptions (96), receiving yards (1,364) and touchdowns (eight). He also helped tight end Cole Kmet set career bests for receptions (73) and receiving yards (719)."
Swap in Davante Adams for Moore and consider that the Raiders have elite tight ends in Michael Mayer and Brock Powers and their reason for hiring Luke Getsy becomes clearer. Add in the fact that his defeat of Las Vegas with Chicago last year, as previously mentioned, came with Tyson Bagent, the backup quarterback, and one can see his appeal for Antonio Pierce.
Now, the new offensive coordinator only needs to repeat that performance 17 times a season.