Former HC Pete Carroll Passes the Buck For Raiders' Failed 2025 Season

Last offseason, the Las Vegas Raiders traded a third-round pick to the Seattle Seahawks for quarterback Geno Smith. Then, they paid Smith a massive contract before he ever suited up for them. Both decisions would come back to haunt the Raiders, and quickly, too.

Raiders' Slide

After beating the eventual AFC Champions in Week 1, Las Vegas would go on to lose 14 of its next 16 games, which included a 10-game losing streak. This was after an offseason of slightly raised but reasonable expectations for the Raiders after adding Smith and others.

The Raiders' hopes of a productive season were halfway down the drain long before the halfway point of the season. Las Vegas spent the entire season trying their best to protect Smith and generate a sliver of offense on a weekly basis. Neither happened during the 2025 season.

The lost season netted the Raiders the top pick in the draft, which will likely be quarterback Fernando Mendoza. Carroll and Smith are no longer with the Raiders, but the dismal season they spearheaded in Las Vegas set the Raiders up for a future far beyond their lone season in Las Vegas.

Still, the 2025 season had several odd occurrences that only Carroll and Smith can explain. Neither had done so until now. Carroll recently spoke to ESPN's Rich Cimini about the struggles he and Smith encountered in Las Vegas. Carroll noted those difficulties came on and off the field.

"He's a phenomenal quarterback, he really is. He had a fantastic offseason and preseason with us, and he comes out in the first game, has a great first game. It was all fitting. It was exactly the right time for us. Then we just faltered and faltered. We didn't do well enough, coaching," Carroll said about Smith

"We should've had him better prepared for the things that happened, and that wouldn't have happened," he continued. "I take a lot of responsibility in that. We didn't prepare him well enough in the offseason even though he looked great and we felt we had everything lined up. It was very, very disappointing for us both."

Aug 23, 2025; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Geno Smith (7) talks to head coach Pete Carroll against the Arizona Cardinals during a preseason NFL game at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Carroll elaborated, noting that their time together in Las Vegas got off on the wrong foot and never recovered. Smith threw an interception on his first pass in a regular season game in Allegiant Stadium, which was on Carroll's birthday. It was a sign of things to come for them both.

"He got off to such a miserable start, and it wasn't just him. It was the whole thing. We just didn't function well early on, and he got behind the eight ball right from the beginning," Carroll said.

"Everybody wanted to blame him for it, and he took it and took it and took it, and then they captured him -- an exchange or whatever. He just didn't get to reap the benefits of our relationship."