Pete Carroll Sheds Light on Several Critically Important Raiders

The Las Vegas Raiders' season got off on the wrong foot after injuries to some of their most critical players have made a bad situation worse just four games into the season.

Understanding the Raiders' Decision

The Raiders decided shortly before Week 5 to sit Brock Bowers against the Indianapolis Colts. Bowers clearly has not been right since injuring his knee in the first game of the season. Following the Raiders' loss to the Colts, Pete Carroll explained what went into the decision.

“We were going to rest him all the way through the week and he thought – we all thought – that that was going to make a difference. But as he got down to it on Saturday, he couldn't feel it. He couldn't get right," Carroll said.

"He practiced during the week and got through it, but his knee didn’t respond well enough to feel like he can go 1,000 miles an hour out here on game day. So, a little wishful thinking. Optimism, relentless optimism. Obviously, we’ll get there. If Brock (Bowers) could have played, he would have. And we thought that by resting them it would make a difference, and we didn’t get as much out of that as we had hoped.”

It is evident that the Raiders' offense is not the same without a healthy Bowers and Mayer, while underrated, is hard to replace.

Before this week's set of practices, Carroll provided updates on Bowers and Mayer, as both players' absences have been costly to the Raiders in multiple ways. Not having a fully healthy Bowers has hampered the Raiders' offense.

Michael Mayer's absence has been especially felt on special teams, as the unit has suffered from backups giving up game-changing plays. Mayer's importance to the team was evident during his absence. Carroll explained what the process will look like for Mayer to return.

"Yeah, Mike [Michael Mayer] has his opportunities tomorrow to get cleared, and we'll see how that goes. Fingers crossed on all that, he feels like he's ready to go, and has felt like that. But the protocol is challenging and we respect it.

Sep 15, 2025; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Las Vegas Raiders tight end Brock Bowers (89) takes the field for warm ups before the game against the Los Angeles Chargers at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images | Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

"Brock [Bowers] -- he's week-to-week. We got to see what's going on and see if we can get him back. And he's dying to play. We went all the way till Saturday's walk-through to see if he could go, and it didn't feel like he could. So, we'll just start over again, do it again this week."

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