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The Las Vegas Raiders fell to 2-11 after their Week 14 loss to the Denver Broncos on December 7 at Allegiant Stadium. Pete Carroll’s first season with the Silver and Black continues to be a disaster, and questions about his future persist.
Carroll has fired his special teams and offensive coordinators, but the changes in the coaching staff haven’t sparked the team into securing any wins. Moreover, the Raiders are on a seven-game losing streak.
Should Las Vegas close out the final four games without winning a game and finish the season 2-15, could that be enough to end the Carroll era after one season? Regarding the latest on the Raiders head coach’s future, CBS Sports’ NFL insider Jonathan Jones shared what he’s hearing.
“I’ve been told don’t worry about the general manager there, John Spytek, in his first year as GM,” Jones said on the December 7 edition of “CBS Sports HQ.” “He has been considered safe and will continue to be considered safe going into his second year. But is the Pete Carroll project working out? He’s already fired two coordinators… [He] didn’t get the quarterback right. This defense isn’t playing very well. The offensive line was not figured out and will not be figured out this season.
“There [are] claims of nepotism with Pete Carroll bringing in two of his sons to be on the coaching staff, where they haven’t really been successful without their dad as the head coach. And so all of these things can coalesce, can cascade on Pete Carroll… But a lot of folks within the NFL would not be surprised if, at the end of the season, the Las Vegas Raiders’ job winds up becoming open.”
Are the Raiders an Attractive Job?
If Las Vegas moves on from Carroll, the focus shifts to what kind of coach they plan to chase next. Hondo Carpenter, the Raiders insider for On SI, shared what he has heard from people around the league about how appealing this job looks heading into the offseason.
“Talking to a lot of people around the NFL, this is not going to be an attractive job,“ Carpenter said on the November 30 edition of the “Las Vegas Raiders Insider Podcast.” “So either they’re going to have to make some big-time assurances to a big-time coach, or they’re going to have to go the youth route. And if you go the youth route, you are rolling the dice. I’m not rooting against the franchise, but if you go the youth route, you’d better hope they hit big.
“And those guys usually don’t, but you better hope they do, because the way this franchise has been conditioned, you go get a young coach and he has a rough year, and next year could be rough. Then your fan base is going to be calling to get him fired, and you’re right back where you are.”
Pete Carroll Will Look to Convince the Raiders
Las Vegas still have four games on the 2025 NFL schedule, and Carpenter views this closing stretch as Carroll’s last real chance to show the front office enough to earn a second year. Nonetheless, after the loss to the Broncos, this final stretch didn’t get off to the right start.
“Can [the Raiders] all get on the same page with Pete? And if not, are [they] willing to overpay with a coach that [they] can all get on the same page with or do [they] go with a new guy, [a] new beginner, and then [they are] going to have to help him put together a staff. And what if that doesn’t work? Because those are things you got to look at.
“There are pieces to this that go into this, and I think these last [few] games are [a] total evaluation. Total evaluation. You’ve got to look at every opportunity with a magnifying glass over the totality of the organization.”
Eduardo Razo Eduardo Razo is a sports journalist covering the NFL for Heavy.com. He previously covered the league for NBC Sports Washington and NBC Sports Bay Area & California, and has contributed as a freelance writer for The Sporting News. He also served as an editor for Athlon Sports and Heavy Sports focusing on MLB and the NFL. More about Eduardo Razo
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