On Jan. 4, the Las Vegas Raiders announced the firing of head coach Pete Carroll after one season. It was a disastrous 2025 season for the Silver and Black, going 3-14 as they would secure the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
With the likelihood of the Raiders selecting Indiana Hoosiers QB Fernando Mendoza, it wouldn’t make sense to pair the young signal-caller with an aging defensive coach. As a result, the decision needed to be made as Las Vegas had to move in a different direction.
Moreover, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith believes Carroll didn’t help himself and that the former Raiders coach showed his age this season.
“It absolutely was the right decision,” Smith said on the Jan. 5 edition of “First Take.” “I don’t give a damn about it. No disrespect to the GM, but I don’t give a damn. I want Tom Brady to make that call, because we all know it’s going to be a quarterback getting the No. 1 overall pick.
“There’s one man that should make this call, and that’s a seven-time champion, and it’s Tom Brady. Pete Carroll, God bless him. Father Time is undefeated. We say it about players all the time. Sometimes we have to say it about coaches. He looked old. He just looked a bit outdated. It comes a point in time when you’re looking at certain people.”
Pete Carroll Needs to Enjoy Retirement After Firing
Moreover, Smith isn’t saying that this failed Raiders coaching stint should stain Carroll’s legacy. Nonetheless, the ESPN analyst believes it’s time to hang up the headset and enjoy retirement.
“He’s a two-time national champion. He’s a Super Bowl champion as a head coach. With the two Super Bowls as a head coach, you just got to look at people and sometimes go like this: ‘Yeah, man, the run was good. It’s over.’ That’s what I saw when I was watching the Raiders this year. I just said, time’s up. Not that he can’t coach or anything like that, but today’s players, the mentality, the focus, et cetera, et cetera. I just said, a new voice, a new coach.”
Raiders Get Head Coaching Recommendation
As for who could replace Carroll, FOX Sports’ Colin Cowherd suggested that Kevin Stefanski, who was fired by the Cleveland Browns on Jan. 5, too, would be an ideal candidate for the Silver and Black.
“What I would do if I was the Raiders, I would hire Kevin Stefanski,“ Cowherd said on the Jan. 4 edition of “The Colin Cowherd Podcast.” “I would hire Stefanski; I would give him Mendoza. I think Stefanski is not a yeller. He’s more of a teacher. Mendoza, his personality, he’s intensity. They have to fix their offensive line. They got Brock Bowers, Ashton Jeanty, but the Raiders have to fix the O-line. It’s a mess.”
With Mendoza likely being the pick for the Raiders, Las Vegas need to find a head coach who can get the most out of him and put the signal-caller in a position to succeed. It will be interesting to see who the Raiders’ front office decides to go with.
Pete Carroll Gets Scathing Words After Raiders Firing