Raiders Spiral Continues Under Pete Carroll: Optimism Meets Harsh Reality in Vegas
The Las Vegas Raiders are now 2-12 after a brutal 31-0 shutout loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 15 - their worst showing in a season full of them. And yet, head coach Pete Carroll, ever the optimist, isn’t acting like a man coaching for his job. With three games left in the regular season, Carroll told reporters Monday he doesn’t believe his position is in jeopardy.
But let’s be real: the situation in Las Vegas is dire, and Carroll’s seat is heating up fast.
A Season That Started With Hope-and Quickly Unraveled
When the Raiders brought in Carroll this past offseason, the message was clear: this team was going to compete, and compete now. Carroll, fresh off a long and successful run in Seattle, promised the Raiders were “going to win a bunch.” That hasn’t happened.
Instead, the team peaked in Week 1 with a surprising 20-13 upset over the 11-3 New England Patriots. Since then, it’s been a freefall. The offense has sputtered, the defense hasn’t held up, and the team looks more lost each week.
“I thought we could come in and have a big factor on this club,” Carroll said Monday. “Right now, it doesn’t feel like that.”
That’s an understatement.
Offensive Woes, Defensive Leaks, and a Rookie Struggling to Shine
The Raiders' offense has been one of the league’s least productive units. They’re averaging just 14 points per game-dead last in the NFL.
That’s a step down from last season, when they ranked 29th with 18.2 points per game. Defensively, they’ve barely improved, allowing 25.9 points per game, which puts them at 25th-right around where they finished last year.
Rookie running back Ashton Jeanty, the No. 6 overall pick, was expected to inject life into the offense. But through 14 games, he’s averaging just 3.5 yards per carry and has managed 700 rushing yards-a disappointing return given his draft pedigree.
Simply put, the Raiders haven’t taken a step forward under Carroll. In fact, they may have taken a step back.
Questionable Decisions at the Top
Carroll and first-year general manager John Spytek have made several high-profile moves that haven’t panned out. Chief among them was hiring Chip Kelly as offensive coordinator.
Kelly, whose last stint as an NFL head coach with the Eagles ended in disappointment, didn’t last long in Vegas either. He was fired after a 24-10 loss to the Browns in Week 12.
Then there’s the quarterback situation. In March, the Raiders traded for Geno Smith, a familiar face for Carroll from their time together in Seattle.
But the reunion hasn’t worked. Smith currently ranks 32nd out of 33 qualified quarterbacks in QBR (32.4), and his play has been inconsistent at best.
These moves were supposed to stabilize the franchise. Instead, they’ve only deepened the dysfunction.
What Comes Next?
It’s been over two decades since the Raiders last won a playoff game-2002, to be exact. The organization has cycled through coaches, quarterbacks, and front office regimes, but the results haven’t changed.
Now, with three games left in a lost season, all signs point to another reset. ESPN’s Ryan McFadden reported Monday that the Raiders and Carroll are likely heading for a split this offseason. Based on what we’ve seen on the field, that wouldn’t come as a surprise.
Carroll’s relentless positivity has always been one of his trademarks. It helped build a championship culture in Seattle.
But in Vegas, the problems run deeper than mindset. This team needs more than belief-they need a new direction, a new identity, and maybe, a new coach.
For now, the Raiders are stuck in a familiar place: searching for answers, again.