Why the Raiders Fired Pete Carroll, and Seven Candidates to Replace Him

The former Super Bowl–winning coach is a one-and-done, but Las Vegas should have options with the No. 1 pick in the draft and many Tom Brady connections.

The Raiders fired head coach Pete Carroll on Monday after Las Vegas finished 3-14 in his one season. / Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

The Raiders and Pete Carroll have parted ways after just one season, a 3–14 campaign that earned Las Vegas the No. 1 pick in the 2026 draft. The move is surprising on its face, given that Carroll was the first major hire rubber-stamped by minority owner Tom Brady, but less surprising given what we reported at the time of the hire: Carroll was on a shorter-term contract, which made firing him less financially perilous for owner Mark Davis. The Raiders always had the option to back out if the evidence of progress wasn’t there. 

One thing I cannot take my mind off after watching the Raiders pivot is this: Nick Caserio, now believed to be among the top executives in the NFL, began his term overseeing the Texans with the hires of back-to-back one-and-done coaches David Culley and Lovie Smith, the former of which was hired (from my perspective) in a more overt attempt to lose games with a coach on an unusually short contract. Caserio is steeped in the same New England culture from which Brady came. Could the Raiders continue taking proverbial dart throws at the head coaching position until the team garners enough draft capital for a serious run?

Perhaps Carroll did not begin as a bridge to the No. 1 pick in the draft, especially given how much the Raiders shelled out to pair Carroll with offensive coordinator Chip Kelly and to sign Geno Smith. He merely ended up that way. 

Identity is at the core of this next Raiders hire. Presently, I’m not sure the Raiders even know what the team wants, or how it would best operate with Brady balancing many responsibilities both inside and outside of the organization. In that way, I would not necessarily view this upcoming hire as a be-all, end-all, but possibly another experiment in a long line of experiments. Clearly, there is a stark talent differential between Las Vegas and the rest of the division, even the Patrick Mahomes–less Chiefs. 

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Sometimes, allowing a team to flatline is ultimately the quickest path back to relevance. 

Below is my prescribed short list for the Raiders, which is a mix of names I think will be connected to the opening and names I think should be connected to the opening. One important note specific to the Raiders: With the No. 1 pick and the potential that this team could select Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza out of Indiana, I’m told the Raiders could be interviewing a lot of potential offensive coordinators to pair with head coaches during this cycle, so keep an eye out for names of up-and-coming, non-play-calling offensive coaches. 

A second note that I’d include for any team that drafts Mendoza: Chandler Whitmer, Indiana’s quarterbacks coach and co-offensive coordinator, has NFL ties, having served on both Brandon Staley’s Chargers staff and as a passing-game coordinator for the Falcons. 

Now here is my list of seven candidates for the job. You can also refer back to my longer list of future NFL head coaches from December for a wider look at this cycle’s candidate pool.

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Brian Flores, defensive coordinator, Minnesota Vikings

Flores was a rising defensive coach on New England’s staff when Brady was rounding out a storied career with the Patriots. Flores was also, as Pro Football Talk noted Sunday, the head coach of a Dolphins team interested in pursuing Brady at one point to play quarterback. 

Flores has been one of the league’s most dominant defensive coordinators over the past two seasons and had winning records in each of his last two seasons with the Dolphins before his surprise firing (the indictment that Flores could not make it work with Tua Tagovailoa looks much different now that the Mike McDaniel regime is also hoping to offload the former first-round pick). 

Flores runs a player-charged defense in Minnesota similar in ethos to the one favored by the Raiders, who retained Patrick Graham at the defensive coordinator spot eventually (after first chasing Robert Saleh). Flores will have options this cycle, including his choice of a wide range of defensive coordinator opportunities. 

It’s also worth noting that Flores was beloved in Pittsburgh and could be an option for the Steelers if Mike Tomlin opts to move on at season’s end and take a reset break.

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Robert Saleh, defensive coordinator, San Francisco 49ers

Saleh was a head-coach-in-waiting target of the Raiders this past offseason, had he joined Carroll’s staff. Instead, he returned to San Francisco and helped buoy a 49ers team that was totally washed out by injury to the verge of the No. 1 seed. Brady’s remaining connections in New England had a front-row seat for Saleh’s tenure as head coach of the Jets, a rebuild that was ultimately mismanaged by ownership. Removing Saleh caused the team to plummet in one of the clearer indications of a coach’s singular value to a franchise. 

The 46-year-old has access to a deep inventory of promising offensive coaches in San Francisco who have, or soon will, interview for NFL coordinator jobs. 

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Kliff Kingsbury, offensive coordinator, Washington Commanders

Kingsbury, 46, backed up Brady for a year in New England on his nomadic NFL quarterbacking journey before pivoting into coaching. Kingsbury was 28-37-1 as head coach of the Cardinals, though, like Flores in Miami, was judged on his performance with a quarterback whom the organization will most likely part ways with in time. 

Kingsbury is an accomplished offensive mind who would be a comfort blanket for a quarterback selected No. 1. Alongside Bills OC Joe Brady, Kingsbury is the most experienced play-caller on the market right now. 

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Jesse Minter, defensive coordinator, Los Angeles Chargers

Minter, who won a national championship as the defensive coordinator at Michigan, will likely have some ties to Brady and Raiders GM John Spytek, both of whom played at the university and probably have a deep line of intel on one of the top defensive coordinators. Minter, 42, is one of the biggest beneficiaries of the Mike Macdonald bounce, which has seen an increased tailwind for younger defensive candidates in lieu of a strong offensive pipeline. The Chargers have the sixth best defense in terms of EPA per play over the past two years combined, since Minter took over as the team’s defensive coordinator. 

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Vance Joseph, defensive coordinator, Denver Broncos

Joseph, 53, has multiple advantages on this front. Not only is he currently coaching a divisional rival—high-profile intradivision coordinators are smart interviews for teams hoping to gain intel as well as build a successful staff—but he has a track record of handling difficult situations and locker rooms. Joseph’s lone head coaching opportunity came in the post–Peyton Manning Broncos era. While he did not have a quarterback to bridge the gap, he left the organization on such favorable terms that Denver hired him back to be Sean Payton’s defensive coordinator shortly after he first left. 

Joseph is a player favorite and a noted thorn in the side of the Sean McVay–Kyle Shanahan clan, having spent time in the NFC West as the defensive coordinator of the Cardinals. During that run, according to some, Joseph had “de facto” head coaching responsibilities, aiding the green Kingsbury in his transition to the NFL. 

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Nate Scheelhaase, passing-game coordinator, Los Angeles Rams

The 35-year-old Scheelhaase is one of the hidden gems on McVay’s staff and will almost certainly graduate to a play-caller role this offseason. However, as we mentioned at the top, he may also get some hybrid head coaching interviews as well, given that many are high on the former University of Illinois quarterback. 

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Thomas Brown, passing-game coordinator, New England Patriots

Brown, formerly the Rams’ assistant head coach under McVay and the interim head coach of the Bears last season, has landed on terra firma in New England, where he works very closely with longtime Brady offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels on the surging Patriots. 

The 39-year-old son of a pastor is an electric speaker and contagious personality whose “big break” opportunities have come during immense chaos so far (Brown got a short stint as a play-caller in Carolina during the ill-fated one-and-done Frank Reich year and was bumped up to head coach in Chicago Matt Eberflus’s firing.

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