HENDERSON, Nev. (AP) — The Las Vegas Raiders fired Pete Carroll on Monday after just one year, meaning they will enter their third consecutive season with a new coach in charge.
Carroll expressed high hopes upon taking over, saying he was used to double-digit victories and he expected the same in Las Vegas. But the Raiders went 3-14, going on a 10-game losing streak before finishing with a 14-12 victory over Kansas City on Sunday.
Now the question is where the Raiders head next under the direction of owner Mark Davis, minority owner Tom Brady and general manager John Spytek. Davis said in a statement that Spytek would work with Brady to find the next coach.
“Together, they will guide football decisions with a shared focus on leadership, culture, and alignment with the organization’s long-term vision and goals,” Davis said.
The club could seek an offensive-minded coach to work with a young quarterback should the Raiders draft Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza or Dante Moore with the first overall pick.
That formula worked well this season in Chicago with coach Ben Johnson and quarterback Caleb Williams and in Jacksonville with coach Liam Coen and QB Trevor Lawrence. Both teams are playoff bound after experiencing losing seasons the year before.
There is no one path to success, however. New England hired a defensive coach in Mike Vrabel, and he worked well with quarterback Drake Maye to helped the Patriots go from a 4-13 record to 14-3 and the No. 2 seed in the AFC playoffs.
Carroll, 74, was the NFL’s oldest head coach, and he came to Las Vegas with the intent of winning right away. He got his wish of bringing in quarterback Geno Smith, whom he coached in Seattle. Neither got the success they expected, with Smith throwing a league-high 17 interceptions as the losses piled up.
This wasn’t what Carroll used to as a coach. He coached the Seahawks to a Super Bowl title and Southern California to two national championships.
But now Carroll has been dismissed, just as Antonio Pierce was last year and Josh McDaniels midway through the 2023 season.
The Raiders have run through coaches since appearing in the Super Bowl in the 2002 season. They have made the playoffs just twice since then, losing both wild-card games.
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