The Las Vegas Raiders have been one of the biggest surprises in the NFL through two games, as they have picked up a pair of wins, despite being predicted to be among the worst teams in the league. The Raiders underwent quite a few changes over the offseason, and so far, the majority of them have paid off in a big way.
Perhaps the most noteworthy change of the bunch saw Las Vegas hire former Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak to come in and replace Pete Carroll as their head coach. Carroll’s one-year stint with the Raiders was a mess, and when discussing Kubiak’s hot start to his tenure, one insider seemed to imply that the former Super Bowl-winning head coach may have been holding this team back.
Pete Carroll Catches Heat Amid Raiders’ Hot Start
For the 2025 campaign, the Raiders surprisingly hired Carroll to come in and be their new head coach, and they paired him with his former Seahawks quarterback, Geno Smith. The season was a disaster, though, as Las Vegas finished with the worst record in the league and promptly replaced Carroll with Kubiak.
The Raiders selected Fernando Mendoza with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, but he hasn’t taken the field yet, which makes Kubiak’s arrival the most important move for this team so far. In fact, you can make a case that Kubiak has done his job so well that it has made it so that Mendoza hasn’t had to get thrown into the fire just yet.
Fresh off an impressive Super Bowl run with Seattle, Kubiak has brought a business-like attitude with him to Las Vegas, and the results have been hard to miss so far. Kubiak received some effusive praise from NFL insider Adam Schefter recently, but in the process, he also appeared to take some shots at Carroll for mismanaging the team in 2025.
“It shows you the value of good coaching,” Schefter said on “The Adam Schefter Podcast.” “Klint Kubiak has come in there, and they’ve looked like a different offense. They’ve looked like a different organization. They’ve looked totally different in every which way.”
Klint Kubiak Has the Raiders Trending in the Right Direction
It’s tough to totally blame Carroll for how last season unfolded in Las Vegas, but it became clear as the year went on that he was not the right guy to lead this team. When Kubiak became available, the Raiders pounced, and so far, they are reaping the benefits of their decision to bring him to town.
Sure, Las Vegas has beaten a horrific Miami Dolphins team and a confusing Los Angeles Chargers squad, but you can never get upset with wins in the NFL. The degree of difficulty for the Raiders appears set to get ramped up a notch in Week 3 with a meeting against the New Orleans Saints on deck, but with Kubiak at the wheel, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see this team pull off another upset victory.
Insider Takes Subtle Jab at Former Raiders’ HC Pete Caroll With Klint Kubiak Praise