Pete Carroll is unlikely to remain in charge of the Las Vegas Raiders next season after an atrocious first year at the helm, according to reports.
The Raiders, who are part-owned by NFL legend Tom Brady, have missed out on a playoff spot for the third consecutive year after losing 14 of their last 15 games under Carroll.
While the current campaign is all but over for them, their disastrous form at least means they are in pole position for the No 1 pick in the NFL Draft, with fans desperate to see Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza arrive in Vegas this offseason.
Yet according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero, Mendoza will almost certainly be playing under a new head coach if he does head to Sin City.
Carroll, 74, is not expected to keep his job after overseeing the franchise’s worst season in 11 years, with Brady and majority owner Mark Davis set to go in another direction and replace him ahead of the 2026 campaign.
The Raiders are in need of a full rebuild after firing offensive coordinator Chip Kelly and special teams coordinator Tom McMahon earlier in the season, while Geno Smith’s struggles under center means a quarterback is a top priority in the draft.
Pete Carroll is unlikely to remain in charge of the Raiders next season, according to reports
Owners Mark Davis and Tom Brady are expected to go in another direction this offseason
If they lose Sunday’s regular-season finale to the Kansas City Chiefs, Las Vegas will secure the top pick and boost their chances of finding the centerpiece of their rebuild.
Another dilemma for Brady and Co this offseason comes in the shape of Maxx Crosby, who was left furious at being shut down for their final two games of the season.
The star defensive end was unhappy to be left out of Sunday’s defeat to the New York Giants, a crucial game in the battle for the No 1 draft pick, while he will also not be used against the Chiefs.
Carroll recently claimed Crosby, 28, had a knee injury that ‘looks too bad’, only for him to post footage of himself playing basketball and bouncing on a trampoline on social media at the weekend in an apparent dig at Raiders chiefs.
It was later revealed that he had walked out of the team’s training facility amid a spat over his injury, having reportedly been ‘fighting’ to play against the Giants.
As he prepares to miss out on Sunday’s Week 18 game, Crosby has insisted that he always wants to ‘play to win’ in what appears to be another shot at the franchise.
The Raiders are in need of a full rebuild after going 2-14, with the future of star defensive end Maxx Crosby (pictured) in doubt
‘When it comes to football, there’s certain things that I truly believe in,’ he said on Jim Gray’s ‘Let’s Go’ podcast this week. ‘And I feel like there’s core principles that you gotta live by, and there’s a certain way the game needs to be played. And there’s a certain approach that you have when you go into the field.
‘And the way you look at it, from my perspective, is you play to win. You play for your teammates, you put everything you have into the game, no matter what it is. There’s gonna be bumps and bruises. You’re gonna be banged up. That is a part of the game and the nature of the beast.
‘I never wanna look back and say I wish I would’ve, or I should’ve, done this. I’m all in, and I’ve been all in since day one, and everybody that’s with me on a daily basis knows my approach to this game.
‘They could say I might be on edge. Sometimes I might be. But at the end of the day, they know my intentions. And when you have real relationships and you lead by action instead of words, when you go out there and show the guys, this is how we do it, this is how you work, and you prove it every day, that holds a lot more weight than words. Yeah, I love the game, man. This is my whole life.’
