Jan 7, 2024; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll looks on prior to facing the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports On Friday morning, the Las Vegas Raiders informed other candidates that they are working to hire Pete Carroll as their next head coach.
Carroll was the head coach of the Seattle Seahawks until 2023, when they decided to move in another direction and hire Mike Macdonald.
At 73 years old, Carroll will make NFL history when he coaches for the Raiders, becoming the oldest head coach in NFL history. He turns 74 years old on September 15, which is usually the week after the regular season begins.
While Carroll might be the youngest 73-year-old that you would ever meet, the Raiders are officially on the clock to turn this franchise around quickly. Sure, age is just a number. But we all have an expiration date on this Earth, and he’s not the same youthful leader that coached USC in the early 2000s.
The Raiders got younger when they replaced Jon Gruden with Josh McDaniels and then even younger when they hired Antonio Pierce, who only lasted one full season as head coach in Vegas.
While other teams like the Chicago Bears scrambled to hire young, hotshot coordinators like Ben Johnson, the Raiders decided to take their own approach by hiring a proven winner who can create a much-needed culture in Las Vegas.
We’ve heard reports that Tom Brady, who is now a minority owner of the Raiders, has a loud voice throughout the organization. Probably not a bad thing, since he’s done his fair share of winning in the NFL not so long ago.
Brady’s time with Bill Belichick was historic. At the end of his career, Brady’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers were coached by Bruce Arians, who became the oldest coach to ever win a Super Bowl at 68 years old. While the ending was rather unceremonious, there’s no denying that Brady’s influence on the Raiders allowed them to factor in an older candidate like Carroll.
The Raiders will now pivot their attention to finding their quarterback of the future.
Earlier this week, Vegas hired Buccaneers assistant GM John Spytek, another individual with a connection to Brady from their time together in Tampa.
Vegas owns the No. 6 overall selection in the NFL Draft. It’s early on in the process, but it seems like both Miami’s Cam Ward and Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders will be selected by that time.
Never sleep on the Raiders as a team to get aggressive and trade up if they fall in love with one of these prospects, especially after hiring Carroll to lead the organization.
Or, perhaps the Raiders allow Carroll to establish an identity and culture, draft the best player available, and take the newly popular path of the stopgap quarterback. Trusted veterans like Russell Wilson will be available, and reports indicate that he’s repaired his relationship with Carroll over the past few years.
Kirk Cousins will be a popular name throughout this offseason as well, but if the Raiders really wanted to value media attention over culture building, Aaron Rodgers looked like the better quarterback bouncing back from an Achilles injury last season.
Whatever route the Raiders decide to take, they need to do it urgently. While none of us are getting any younger, that’s especially true for their new head coach.
Oh yeah, that Maxx Crosby guy really wants to win, too. He’s pretty good, and it would be smart to make him happy.
