Pete Carroll was fired by the Seattle Seahawks when he was 72 years previous, however he needed to maintain teaching.
His subsequent NFL cease turned out to be an absolute mess. And it did not final lengthy.
Carroll was fired by the Las Vegas Raiders after the crew went 3-14 in his first season, the crew introduced on Monday.
The crew signed him to a three-year contract to grow to be the crew’s head coach in January 2025. Now, they will transfer ahead with a brand new chief, having clinched the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, getting into a brand new period.
Advertisement
Carroll was introduced in to enhance the tradition and the competitiveness of a Raiders franchise that has been among the many NFL’s worst for many years. It was an odd alternative, with a crew nowhere close to competition hiring the oldest head coach in NFL historical past. But Carroll, who had an extended observe report of success with the Seahawks, and at USC earlier than that, appeared like he ought to be an improve over what the Raiders have had these days.
He wasn’t, and the Raiders determined it wasn’t value making an attempt once more for a second season with him.
Pete Carroll does not work out with Raiders
Carroll got here to the Seahawks with a modest NFL resume from the Nineties. He had a largely unsuccessful stint with the Jets and one season with the Patriots, which ended in a shedding season. It regarded like possibly he was only a good faculty coach when he adopted that up with an incredible run at USC. But in Seattle, he was a smashing success, with a 137-89-1 report and main the crew to its first-ever Super Bowl championship.
Advertisement
His firing after the 2023 season by the Seahawks was stunning, however the Seahawks needed to go in a distinct course, and no one questioned Carroll’s means as an NFL coach. After the Raiders misplaced out on their publicized chase of Ben Johnson to exchange Antonio Pierce as their head coach final offseason, they settled on Carroll. Not a lot went proper.
The Raiders made three different big strikes to attempt to enhance instantly. They hired Chip Kelly because the highest-paid offensive coordinator in the NFL. They traded for Carroll’s old quarterback in Seattle, 35-year-old Geno Smith. And they drafted a working again, Ashton Jeanty, with the sixth general decide. All of these strikes have been win-now strikes. Kelly was fired in midseason, Smith fell aside and was booed typically by the house followers, and Jeanty had a disappointing and unproductive rookie season.
The losses piled up. After a season-opening win on the Patriots, the Raiders received solely one among their subsequent 15 video games, and that was in opposition to a lowly Titans crew at dwelling. The losses grew to become much less aggressive, like a 31-0 loss on the Eagles in Week 15. They did beat the Chiefs in Week 18, which was a pleasant sendoff however removed from sufficient to avoid wasting Carroll’s job.
As losses piled up, it began to grow to be clear that Carroll was probably to get replaced after only one season. The query grew to become whether or not he would make it to the top of his first season.
Advertisement
Who will Raiders rent?
The Raiders’ opening can be a troublesome promote, prefer it was when Johnson determined to go to the Chicago Bears as an alternative of Las Vegas. Perhaps the No. 1 general decide and the flexibility to start out recent with a brand new quarterback, doubtlessly Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza, can be a draw.
Brock Bowers and Maxx Crosby are unquestioned stars, and Jeanty was a top-end prospect, however the Raiders lack younger expertise apart from them. Crosby’s future with the crew can also be in doubt after a disagreement over placing him on injured reserve for the ultimate two video games of the season. It’s a franchise that used to have championship glory however has been synonymous with shedding for a very long time. The Raiders have not received a playoff recreation for the reason that 2002 AFC championship recreation. It’s a dysfunctional franchise that lacks a transparent plan, as we noticed by their strikes this previous offseason.
The Raiders have had 14 completely different head coaches, counting interims, during the last 24 seasons. That speaks to their fixed shedding and in addition the shortage of management from possession on down. They’ll be hoping the fifteenth coach in 25 seasons does higher, but it surely’s a long-term mission.
Advertisement
It was additionally a long-term mission once they employed Carroll. It was a bizarre match from the start. And it labored out even worse than anybody might have anticipated.