What a Pete Carroll Hiring Would Mean For the Raiders

After the shock that was Ben Johnson accepting a head coaching position with the Chicago Bears over a perceived frontrunner in the Las Vegas Raiders, the question inevitably turned to who's the new favorite for the Silver and Black's head coaching job?

Raider Nation speculated plenty on X, formerly Twitter. Some called for Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Liam Coen, an offensive play-calling guru who most similarly resembled what made Johnson such an intriguing candidate.

Per ESPN National NFL Insider Adam Schefter, Coen is staying in Tampa for another year at the helm of the offense.

Perhaps the name that has been most associated with the Raiders is former Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll. Carroll reportedly interviewed with the team on Jan. 13. That fact has some fans groaning -- Carroll isn't a spring chicken at 73 years old (74 by the end of the 2025 season's first month).

It's easy to reduce Carroll to his age; there is always the sentiment, how true or not is anyone's guess, that the older a coach is the more likely he is to be "out of touch" with the modern game. It would be a misguided take.

Carroll has always leaned to a more "CEO" approach as a head coach. He could surround himself with those fancy young offensive and defensive gurus to counteract what he's forgotten about the game he has been part of his entire life (sarcasm there).

Whatever one might say about the end to his tenure with the Seahawks is valid, though it was an organization in need of a change, first and foremost.

But the fact of the matter is that Carroll is a proven winner and if the Raiders are honest about wanting an experienced, stable leader at head coach, like reports from our Hondo Carpenter and others have said, Carroll would be the best pick available.

Carroll has 30 years worth of cumulative NFL experience. During that time, he had three different head coaching stints of varying levels of success and failure. A one-and-done (New York Jets in 1994), and a dismal follow-up to Bill Parcells with the New England Patriots for three seasons from 1997-1999.

Obviously, the Seahawks tenure is the one to be judged -- 14 seasons, 137-89-1 win/loss record, nine playoff berths, a 10-9 playoff record, two Super Bowl appearances and a Super Bowl title. If Bill Belichick was the best NFL coach of the 2010s, Carroll would likely be a firm No. 2.

Carroll is a fierce competitor, though that characteristic is sometimes overlooked for his image as poster-boy for the modern "Player's Coach", a folksy and loose presence in the locker room and at the podium.

That image was part of his incredible reinvention at USC, where he led the Trojans to one of the greatest dynasties in college football history -- three Heisman Trophy winners, two national championships, and a remarkable Vince Young performance away from a historic three-peat (though most LSU fans would disagree with that fact).

Outside of the age criticism, what is there not to like about Carroll?

Perhaps his ability to jump the shark in big games is one of the biggest ones; leaving Heisman Trophy winner Reggie Bush on the sideline for a crucial fourth-and-1 in the 2006 Rose Bowl should deservedly be looked at under a microscope, though there are defenders of that call and a play-calling precedent to back it up.

Obviously, Carroll will always draw the ire of the NFL at-large for what many will consider the worst play-call in Super Bowl and NFL history -- choosing to throw on the goal line with the big game on the line when Carroll had the most dominant power back of a generation at his disposal. It cost him a second Super Bowl ring.

All of that aside, the obvious benefits of Carroll are his experience and ability to inject stability into the organization. Despite his age, Carroll remains an energetic presence who could help embolden a franchise that has lacked energy since the departure of Jon Gruden.

With minority owner Tom Brady leading the charge and a proven genius at GM in recent hire John Spytek, Carroll would have a lot to work with.

As a defensive-minded coach (he first cut his teeth as a defensive backs coach and defensive coordinator), Carroll could help the Silver and Black mitigate the expected loss of defensive coordinator Patrick Graham (though defensive line coach Rob Leonard is more than capable of that task if he stays).

And what if Carroll is only around for two, three seasons at most? He can spend that time helping develop a signal caller for his successor; during that time, he can also have a hand in developing a successor at head coach.

The best candidate available this hiring cycle, all things considered, was Mike Vrabel. He was off the market faster than a Tyreek Hill go-route. Johnson and Coen seemed like serviceable if questionable candidates (some believed there to be a lack of leadership intangibles), but would they have meshed with a Maxx Crosby? Plus, Brady and Co. reportedly want to avoid another inexperienced head coach.

Carroll isn't the perfect candidate; there is no such thing. That being said, a proven, experienced Super Bowl-winner as a last-ditch option?

There are far worse candidates.

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