REPORT: Why Raiders' HC Carroll May Have an Uphill Battle

The Las Vegas Raiders hired Pete Carroll as their next head coach. While there is reason to be excited, the position has a few undeniable difficulties.

Dec 18, 2023; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll stands on the sideline during the third quarter against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images / Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

It has been an eventful week for the Las Vegas Raiders, as losing out on Ben Johnson expedited their general manager and head coaching search.

The Raiders are looking to start fresh after consecutive disappointing seasons. They entered the season needing to figure out many things, primarily their general manager and head coaching positions.

They took care of both by hiring John Spytek from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as their general manager and Pete Carroll as their head coach.

However, Alex Kennedy of Pro Football Network believes the Raiders may have found the coach they need in Pete Carroll.

Kennedy believes Carroll gives the Raiders an upgrade at the head coaching position, but also believes there are multiple things about Carroll and the Raiders, individually, to wonder if Carroll and the Raiders are a match.

"There are no two ways about it: the production in Seattle fell off a cliff before Carroll and the organization decided, mutually, that he would no longer serve as the team’s head coach," Kennedy said. 

"During his final three seasons as the man in charge of the team (2021-23), Carroll struggled to field a team that was competitive on either side of the ball. Over that stretch, his ‘Hawks were bottom-10 in punt rate (23rd, they punted on 38.9% of drives), red zone efficiency (24th) on the offensive side, along with points per drive (23rd), and turnover percentage on the defensive side (26th).

Kennedy noted how Carroll fared once his former team lost their star quarterback, who was declining. While this would normally not be much of a concern for a new head coach, it does become a notable point when considering Carroll's age and the fact that the Raiders are without a premier quarterback.

"The offensive rankings can be pinned on the decline and departure of [Russell] Wilson, though we’ve seen him prove capable of leading the Pittsburgh Steelers to the playoffs this year, calling into question Carroll’s ability to get the most out of his players," Kennedy said. "The defensive rankings are even more alarming, as that is believed to be Carroll’s bread-and-butter. During the first 11 seasons of his tenure (2010-20), Seattle ranked as the third-best unit in both of those categories, highlighting just how drastic the production cliff was."

If the Raiders are unable to get a legitimate quarterback this offseason, Carroll could find himself in a similar position to the one he was in with the Seahawks, which would be bad news for everyone involved.

Luckily, with Tom Brady in the fold and the Raiders' 4-13 campaign this season, it is hard to imagine the Raiders will not address the quarterback position more adequately this offseason than in years past.

Ensure you follow on X (Twitter) @HondoCarpenter and IG @HondoSr and never miss another breaking news story again.

Please let us know your thoughts when you like our Facebook page WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE.