Raiders' Surprising Self-Reflection Uncovers Fascinating Truths

HENDERSON, Nev. — The Las Vegas Raiders (1-3) are entering concerning territory as they prepare to head on the road this weekend, a team in need of something positive and fast.

Our latest episode of the Las Vegas Raiders Insider Podcast explores surprising truths that emerge from a deep analysis of the Silver and Black.

You can watch the entire podcast below:

Pete Carroll has his work cut out for him. The Raiders can’t afford to fall to 1-4 on the season, and to avoid that, they have a stiff test in Indianapolis this weekend versus the Colts.

He spoke on Wednesday about the state of his team and the enormity of the issues that they face.

Pete Carroll, Jackson Powers Johnson | Darrell Craig Harris, On SI

You can read the partial transcript below:

Head Coach Pete Carroll

Q: Obviously last week, you guys did a lot better of a job going after the run defense compared to Week 3. How beneficial is that kind of seeing the run defense get back on track, especially going against Jonathan Taylor?

Sep 28, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor (28) is chased down by Los Angeles Rams defensive end Kobie Turner (91) in the second half at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Head Coach Pete Carroll: "Yeah, I would like to think it was an outlier that that happened. We missed that stinking play that they go 60 yards on with four guys miss the guy. But our run defense has been solid. We've been pretty consistent, except for that big play there. This was a really good outing for us. I thought both sides of the ball really benefited from the week of practice. I've made a big deal about it. Today, we're going out on 'Comp Wednesday,' and expecting those guys to continue to improve.”

Carroll continued, “What I've known from the past is you stack Wednesday and Thursday practices, and if you keep having really good ones and your team improves and they get better, and last week was a really good indication of that. Remember, I was grousing about the week before because of the walkthroughs and all that to try to bounce back, and we missed this element of the preparation process two weeks ago, and we benefited this past week. Now, we need to build on that, and you need to stack those days up.”

Las Vegas Raiders Pete Carroll | Darrell Craig Harris, On SI

Carroll elaborated more when adding, “Wednesdays are huge for us, and it's the fundamental day. It's the line of scrimmage. It's all those things on both sides of the football that they can elevate and really, really come around. So, it showed last week."

Q: How did you think Darien Porter played?

Coach Carroll: "Yeah, he did nice job, and he's continued to tackle well on teams, and he had a couple shots in the game. He did well, so I'm hoping that we get a chance to get him in the game a little bit more than we did last week."

Q: When someone like Brock Bowers is slowly trying to get back to 100%, how much does that change the way you guys run as an offense?

Las Vegas Raiders TE Brock Bowers | Darrell Craig Harris, On SI

Coach Carroll: "Well, we're still trying to go to him. We're still trying to get the ball to him and use him for all of the great skills that he has. So, nothing's changed in that regard. I think we're going to see him better as he gets rid of that brace that he's wearing in a couple weeks or whenever that happens. It's worked out well to have him plan. He's been out there, and then he's been able to practice and prepare and all of that. And he's an incredible asset to our team. But we would love for him to get the ball more."

Q: Did you feel that coming to life a little bit in the fourth quarter? I think it was that last drive where you started going to Brock Bowers, and he started making things happen.

Coach Carroll: "Unfortunately, it's happened in a couple games where we've got him late more than early, and that's not by design at all. It's just we've been trying to get things going, but it just didn't happen. So, we'll continue to work at that. We love going to him."

Q: Did he look a little bit better, though? I mean, did it feel to you like he was looking a little bit more fluid?

Coach Carroll: "I think he's looked more himself every week."

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