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Brian Ramos<\/a><\/p>\n Aja Wilson holding the WNBA championship trophy at the Las Vegas Aces 2023 WNBA championship parade in Las Vegas, Monday, October 23, 2023, Brian Ramos.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \n<\/div>\n <\/p>\n The Raiders need their version of Marc-Andr\u00e9 Fleury<\/a>, one of the best goalies in NHL history, who gave Las Vegans many nights of meaningful hockey and reasons to be proud.<\/p>\n The Silver and Black need someone like the Aces\u2019 A\u2019ja Wilson<\/a>, the world\u2019s top women\u2019s basketball player who has won multiple championships for the city.<\/p>\n The Raiders are searching for that player who is so beloved that schoolchildren race to buy his jersey and sit anxiously on Sunday afternoons hoping their idol leads the team to a win. And then to playoff wins. And then to championships.<\/p>\n That\u2019s been noticeably missing in the Raiders\u2019 five-year run since relocating here from Oakland. Las Vegas has one playoff appearance in that stretch, and this season didn\u2019t win a division game while suffering through a 10-game losing streak. It was ugly.<\/p>\n Sure, tight end Brock Bowers had a massive rookie season<\/a>, but a tight end can only do so much. Maxx Crosby<\/a> is one of the sport\u2019s top defensive linemen and a fan favorite. But he doesn\u2019t score touchdowns, didn\u2019t lead the franchise to notable wins and might not be on the roster next season. For many, though, he is beloved \u2014 of course, just not to the level of Fleury.<\/p>\n That would be hard to match.<\/p>\n We were reminded of how much we love Fleury on Sunday, when he returned with the Minnesota Wild for likely his last NHL game at T-Mobile Arena. This is the final season of his 22-year career.<\/p>\n We greeted him with signs of appreciation, loud applause and a video tribute. Let\u2019s hope his jersey is retired by the franchise.<\/p>\n He had returned a few times since leaving in 2021 \u2014 and each reunion was a great reminder of the power of having someone as the face of a franchise. Take note, Raiders:<\/p>\n Fleury is popular because he quickly became one of us.<\/p>\n He embraced coming to the expansion Golden Knights in the nontraditional hockey market of Southern Nevada and then was masterly in leading them to the Stanley Cup Final in the franchise\u2019s inaugural season of 2017-18.<\/p>\n We fell in love with the team during that magical run \u2014 after all, as UNLV football showed these past two seasons, we love supporting winners.<\/p>\n During its ongoing search for a coach and general manager, Raiders leadership is looking to find the architects of a winning franchise.<\/p>\n Whomever they hire will be tasked with identifying and developing the franchise quarterback that is desperately missing \u2014 from a community standpoint, and more importantly, on the field. It\u2019s virtually impossible to consistently win without a serviceable quarterback.<\/p>\n That person is the face of the franchise and is plastered on billboards to promote your brand. He will be the most valuable player on the team and the one player you aren\u2019t going to win a championship without.<\/p>\n The teams still alive in the playoffs have that signal caller, like Patrick Mahomes in Kansas City, Josh Allen with Buffalo or rookie Jayden Daniels in Washington.<\/p>\n Of the 32 NFL teams, Las Vegas is facing one of the worst quarterback situations this offseason. The Raiders don\u2019t have anyone on the roster who is capable and likely won\u2019t be able to find anyone in the draft.<\/p>\n The Tennessee Titans and Cleveland Browns \u2014 two franchises also struggling \u2014 have the Nos. 1 and 2 picks and can target top quarterbacks Cam Ward of Miami and Shedeur Sanders of Colorado.<\/p>\n The Raiders could trade into one of the top picks, but that would require parting with multiple future first-round selections, in essence mortgaging the future with the hopes the player they pick turns out to be that franchise quarterback they\u2019re searching for.<\/p>\n A trade would be a calculated risk because Ward and Sanders aren\u2019t guarantees, like when the Colts drafted Peyton Manning in 1998 or Andrew Luck in 2012 \u2014 or when the Aces took Wilson in 2018.<\/p>\n The fear would be getting a player who fails to pan out, like the Raiders lived through when they took JaMarcus Russell first overall in 2007. Russell lasted just three years with the franchise and finished with more interceptions than touchdown passes. No other NFL team offered him a contract after his relatively brief stint with the Raiders was over.<\/p>\n The Raiders in this offseason of change will have a different look in the spring when players report for minicamp. A fresh approach from the new coach could be the start of transitioning into a winning franchise.<\/p>\n It\u2019s a transition that will only happen with the emergence of the quarterback of the future and the new face of the Silver and Black.<\/p>\n This franchise needs that cornerstone player. It needs someone to build around. It needs an all-time great.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n