5 immediate tasks on to-do list for Raiders’ next GM

While John Spytek, a successful executive in the Buccaneers’ front office and associate of Tom Brady, has been the front-runner from the beginning, the interview process has taken the Raiders down some other paths.

It’s wise for the Raiders to explore all possibilities, because whoever ends up with the gig faces a tough assignment.

The team is coming off a 4-13 season with a roster that has plenty of holes, and all three of the Raiders’ AFC West rivals make the playoffs this season and show no intention of slowing down anytime soon.

The Raiders haven’t won a playoff game since the 2002 postseason.

They should not be looking for a quick fix. They should be trying to find a way to build a foundation on which to construct a sustainable plan for long-term success.

But that will start with getting the right person in place as general manager and then that person having a successful first offseason.

Here are some of the items on the first to-do list for whoever gets the job:

Build a rapport with coach

It’s possible the new coach and general manager will have a pre-existing relationship, but they are going to have to quickly get in sync about how to move the team forward.

There are some major decisions to be made, and the timeline will be accelerated.

What kind of systems do they want to put in place on both sides of the ball, and what type of players will be best-suited to fit that plan?

What types of traits do they want to prioritize when building their first draft board?

These are just a few examples. The bottom line is there needs to be an organizational plan in place, and the coach and general manager will need to be on the same page.

That rapport could take time to build, but it needs to get to a solid starting point quickly for the other offseason tasks to get checked off properly.

Find a quarterback

The Raiders moved on from Derek Carr two years ago because he was just good enough to keep them competitive, but not good enough to take them to the next level.

But they have yet to find any semblance of a replacement who has the ability to take them to the next level.

Jimmy Garoppolo was never really healthy. Gardner Minshew played the worst season of his career. Aidan O’Connell is a great locker room guy who’s a competent quarterback, but isn’t really a long-term answer.

It’s imperative the Raiders find their guy soon. But it’s more important to get it right than to get it right now.

There aren’t many options in the draft, and because the Raiders played themselves out of the top five, they may have to trade up if they identify one of the top two candidates, Shedeur Sanders or Cam Ward, as their target.

The free-agent market is also thin. The Raiders probably aren’t going to compete next year anyway, so perhaps the new general manager decides it would be more prudent to keep building the roster in other places and find the quarterback to plug in next offseason when the roster is more competitive from top to bottom.

Or perhaps, the new coach has someone in mind whom he can work with the general manager to acquire. Like, for example, if Ben Johnson gets the job and suggests the front office pursue an option like Detroit’s Hendon Hooker.

Nothing should be off the table.

Clean up the house

The Raiders will have plenty of cap space, likely the second-most in the league. That doesn’t mean it’s time for a spending spree.

There are decisions to be made first regarding some key players already in the building.

Star defensive end Maxx Crosby has two more years but no more guaranteed money left on his deal and has publicly hinted at a desire to change that moving forward. If he is truly part of the rebuilding plan, the Raiders will probably try to use some of their cap space to do a new deal with him.

Wide receiver Jakobi Meyers is entering the last year of his deal with no more guaranteed money and could also be in line for an extension.

There are probably decisions to be made on offensive linemen Andre James and Kolton Miller as well.

Pick a path

In free agency, there is certainly a big opportunity for the Raiders with so much money to spend.

But it will be important to have a plan. Do the Raiders want to make several big splashes, signing young players on multiyear deals to build a foundation to compete in two or three years?

Or would it be more prudent to add guys on short-term contracts that will expire next season and allow the Raiders to be in another good place cap-wise a season from now, when everyone has a better idea where the franchise actually stands?

This will probably depend on how the new regime feels about the roster after their initial evaluations. Yes, there is a huge need for improvement. But there were also a lot of young players who got really good experience last season and could be in line to make a leap.

The key will be having a plan and executing it. Far too often, the Raiders have been caught in a no-man’s-land of half-heartedly trying to compete while also looking to rebuild — and falling short on both.

Get ready to roll

A great deal of time will be spent assembling the roster, but the new general manager will also need to work with the new coaching staff on developing the right offseason plan to get the team ready.

That will involve getting the right depth pieces in the building for the offseason and camp, as well as deciding exactly where the team will train in July. The Raiders used to go to Napa, California, then trained at their Henderson facility since moving to Las Vegas before going to Orange County this past season.

Outgoing coach Antonio Pierce indicated it may not have been the best idea and maybe the Raiders should just use their state-of-the-art home facility. This probably won’t be at the top of the priority list, but there won’t be a whole lot of time to make a decision, either.

There will be plenty of work to do.

Contact Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AdamHillLVRJ on X.