Poll: Will Raiders Fire Pete Carroll?
Pete Carroll became the oldest head coach in NFL history when the Raiders hired him last January. With a resume that includes a Super Bowl championship and a national title, expectations were that the Raiders would give the 74-year-old a long leash. However, now a week away from finishing a disastrous season under Carroll, the Raiders may go in another direction in 2026.
In a game featuring 2-13 teams and top contenders for the No. 1 pick in the 2026 draft, the Raiders took a 34-10 beating at the hands of the Giants on Sunday. The outcome may be good for the Raiders’ future – they’re now in pole position to draft first – but it continued a brutal run for the Carroll-led club. Las Vegas has now dropped 10 in a row. The Raiders haven’t been competitive during several games in that stretch. They’ve lost three by 24-plus points and two via shutout.
With the Raiders showing little life on the field, Carroll has reportedly been on the hot seat for weeks. Moves to shake up his first (and perhaps only) Raiders coaching staff haven’t gotten the team out of the basement. Carroll parted with special teams coach Tom McMahon and offensive coordinator Chip Kelly at different points in November, but the losing hasn’t stopped.
Even though Kelly was the league’s highest-paid OC, and although part-owner Tom Brady was instrumental in hiring him, the Raiders cut the cord on the experienced play caller. The philosophies of Carroll and Kelly clashed during their 11-game run together.
The Raiders’ offense averaged a horrid 15 points per game with Kelly at the controls, but replacing him with Greg Olson hasn’t worked. The number has fallen to 14.2 since Kelly’s ouster. Not surprisingly, the Raiders are last in the league in scoring.
Hoping to improve Carroll’s chances of immediate success, the Raiders reunited him with quarterback Geno Smith. They traded a 2025 third-rounder to Seattle for Smith and immediately handed him a two-year, $75MM extension. While Smith performed well as Carroll’s starter in Seattle from 2022-23, that hasn’t been the case in a new city. Smith has been among the league’s least effective QBs this year, which is among the reasons Carroll may be at risk of a one-and-done tenure in Las Vegas.
While this has easily been the worst season of Carroll’s 19 as an NFL head coach, he still believes Raiders ownership (Mark Davis and Brady) is in his corner. Brady’s presence helped steer Carroll to Las Vegas, but the results have been so poor that the two sides may be on their way to a divorce a year later. It wouldn’t be the first short-lived Vegas marriage.
Do you expect the Raiders to dismiss Carroll? Vote in PFR’s latest poll and have your say in the comments section.
Pete Carroll Addresses Job Security; Raiders Interested In Jesse Minter?
The Raiders took a step toward securing the first overall pick by losing yesterday. Vegas now has a record of 2-14, though, and the team has lost 10 straight games. 
The fate of head coach Pete Carrol therefore remains something to watch closely as ‘Black Monday’ approaches. The Super Bowl winner has been named a strong one-and-done candidate on multiple occasions, although he fully plans to remain with the Raiders beyond the final week of the season. Carroll spoke after Sunday’s loss and reiterated his stance that ownership still backs him.
“I do. From all the guys I’ve talked to, I do feel like I have their support,” the 74-year-old said (video link). “What does that mean? I don’t know, but our conversations have been really good.”
Such remarks are commonplace late in the season for coaches in danger of being dismissed. As Carroll is no doubt well aware, dialogue with ownership in no way guarantees stability from one year to the next. The Raiders in particular have cycled through a long list of HC and GM combinations in recent years, including the organization’s reshaping in 2025. Carroll was hired during Tom Brady‘s first offseason as an official minority owner, one in which John Spytek was brought in as general manager.
Things have certainly not gone according to plan this year. Carroll has already fired a pair of coordinators – including the highly-compensated Chip Kelly – with production on offense proving to be a major challenge. The Raiders also rank 25th in the NFL in scoring defense, an illustration of the extent to which widespread improvement will be required in 2026. Two HC vacancies currently exist around the league, and more will soon open; whether or not Vegas joins the list of suitors for a new coach will be interesting to monitor over the coming days.
In the event a change is made on the sidelines, several staffers with a defensive background are set to dominate the pool of replacement candidates. One of those is Chargers defensive coordinator Jesse Minter, whom Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated identifies as a “name to keep an eye on” with respect to Vegas. Minter developed a strong track record in the college ranks before following Jim Harbaugh from Michigan to the Bolts in 2024. Los Angeles has thrived defensively under Minter. The 42-year-old has not served as a head coach yet during his career, but that could soon change and the Raiders could find themselves amongst his suitors.
Raiders HC Pete Carroll ‘Intent’ On Keeping Job
The Raiders brought in a new regime to guide their franchise in 2025, but unless the team somehow wins their final two games of the season, they’ll finish with their worst showing since the 2014 campaign. Considering the dismal on-field product, there have been some natural rumblings about Pete Carroll‘s job security. If the head coach has his way, he’ll be sticking in Las Vegas for the 2026 season.
According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero, the 74-year-old isn’t planning to retire. Instead, Carroll is “intent on convincing” owner Mark Davis that he should keep his job.
Rapoport and Pelissero detail the various issues the Raiders have dealt with in 2025. On the coaching staff, offensive coordinator Chip Kelly and special teams coordinator Tom McMahon were both canned. On the field, Geno Smith has tossed 14 interceptions after being acquired this offseason for a third-round pick. Meanwhile, sixth-overall pick Ashton Jeanty has been one of the least efficient RBs in the NFL, compiling 828 rushing yards on 224 carries. Individually, none of these issues are a direct indictment of Carroll. However, when combined, you can make a strong argument that the organization already requires a change.
Plus, as Rapoport and Pelissero note, Carroll wasn’t even the organization’s top choice to lead the squad. Tom Brady helped guide the search and landed his desired GM in John Spytek. However, the iconic QB saw his HC target, Ben Johnson, opt for the Bears gig. Both NFL Network reporters believe Brady will “increase his presence” this offseason as the team faces some crucial decisions.
Davis will ultimately have the final say, and the owner isn’t afraid to pull the plug if things aren’t working out. The Raiders have famously shuffled through coaches, as the team has employed five different head coaches (including interim HCs) over the past five years.
If Carroll is ultimately ousted, it will be a disappointing development for the former Super Bowl winner. His long stint in Seattle unceremoniously ended in 2023, but even then, the Seahawks never bottomed out, as Carroll still guided the team to a 9-8 record during his final season at the helm. Carroll has the track record of developing competitive squads, so perhaps the Raiders will give their head coach another season to right the ship. If not, the front office will be seeking yet another individual to lead their roster.
Latest On Raiders’ Pete Carroll, John Spytek
DECEMBER 9: Several NFL executives predict Carroll will wind up being a one-and-done Raiders coach, Jason La Canfora of the Washington Post writes. If that holds true, it will be interesting to see if another NFL gig winds up presenting itself during the 2026 hiring cycle.
DECEMBER 8: After finishing a dismal 4-13 last season, the Raiders fired head coach Antonio Pierce and general manager Tom Telesco. Their replacements, Pete Carroll and John Spytek, are on pace to produce similarly poor results in 2025. At 2-11, the Raiders are tied with the Giants and Titans for the NFL’s worst record with four games remaining.
Although Carroll joined the Raiders with plenty of past success under his belt, he’s already on the hot seat. Carroll has fired two key assistants – offensive coordinator Chip Kelly, then the league’s highest-paid OC, and special teams coach Tom McMahon – in what has been a nightmarish season. With the Raiders having lost seven in a row, Carroll’s reshuffling of the coaching staff hasn’t worked.
Despite the Raiders’ struggles, Carroll hasn’t lost any desire to continue coaching, according to Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports. Already the oldest head coach in league history, Caroll will roam the sidelines at the age of 75 if he returns in 2026. However, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Raiders move on from Carroll after this season, Jones says.
While Carroll’s Raiders tenure may go down as a one-and-done stint, the same isn’t true for Spytek. The 45-year-old “will continue to be considered safe,” Jones reports. That isn’t a surprise when considering Spytek’s ties to Raiders part-owner Tom Brady, who wields heavy influence over the franchise’s decisions.
Spytek and Brady were college teammates at the University of Michigan. Their paths crossed again when Spytek was a bigwig in the Buccaneers’ front office and Brady was their quarterback from 2020-22.
A few days after hiring Spytek, the Raiders brought in Carroll, who initially had reservations about the job. Carroll said Brady’s presence “shifted my thought about what this opportunity was about.” Expectations were that the Mark Davis-owned Raiders would afford the former Super Bowl winner a longer leash than they gave Pierce and Josh McDaniels, their most recent full-time head coaches. Pierce lasted 26 games (seven in an interim role), while McDaniels was in charge for 25. Carroll may not make it that far.
If the Raiders fire Carroll, they could wind up in the unenviable position of searching for a new head coach and a different starting quarterback for the second straight offseason. The modest success Carroll and former Seahawks starter Geno Smith had together in Seattle has not transferred to Las Vegas. Hoping he would provide a short-term answer under center, the Raiders traded a third-round pick for Smith last April and immediately gave him a two-year, $75MM extension. The move has backfired, though, with the 35-year-old performing like one of the league’s worst QBs this season. If Carroll isn’t safe, Smith might not be either.
Raiders HC Pete Carroll On Hot Seat?
Pete Carroll became the NFL’s oldest head coaching hire this past offseason when he was brought in by the Raiders. His return to the sidelines has not gone well, though, and it remains to be seen if a second Vegas season will be in store.
Carroll has already dismissed two coordinators – Tom McMahon (special teams) and Chip Kelly (offense) – this month. The Raiders sit at 2-10 at this point, and plenty of work will need to be done in the spring to improve the current roster. At 74, Carroll may not been seen as a strong fit for a rebuilding process.
The Super Bowl winner took a three-year contract to join the Raiders. Expectations for a relatively strong debut season were based in large part on the success Carroll had with quarterback Geno Smith. The two were reunited when Smith was acquired via trade, but that move has not yielded the desired results. Smith’s 13 interceptions lead the NFL, and finding consistent production on offense has proven to be a challenge.
Vegas will enter free agency and the draft this spring with questions about the team’s long-term outlook under center, but by that point another change on the sidelines may have taken place. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport notes (video link) Carroll is on the hot seat. A Saturday Rapoport report detailed the extent to which Carroll influenced the Raiders’ offense in 2025 and the tension it caused with Kelly. With notable firings having been made in-season, it will be interesting to see if Carroll remains in place for next year.
Instability on the sidelines and in the front office has been a defining characteristic of the Raiders during their time in Vegas. The team will look for a period of consistency with general manager John Spytek and minority owner Tom Brady (whose voice carries more weight than his title would imply) through the remainder of this season and beyond. Replacing Carroll would constitute a swing and miss from that duo while also continuing an unwanted trend of short HC tenures.
Since Jon Gruden‘s 2021 resignation, the Raiders have cycled through Rich Bisaccia, Josh McDaniels, Antonio Pierce and now Carroll as head coaches. A positive end to the season would quiet the talk surrounding a potential switch on the sidelines, although Vegas does not face high expectation in that respect.
Raiders HC Pete Carroll Heavily Influenced Offense During Chip Kelly’s Tenure
The Raiders have fired two coordinators this month, including OC Chip Kelly. His brief Vegas tenure fell well short of expectations to say the least. 
Despite giving Kelly $6MM per year to return to the NFL, the Raiders moved on in the immediate aftermath of a dismal loss against the Browns in Week 12. The team is tied for last in the NFL in scoring (15 points per game) and finding success on the ground has been a major challenge despite the presence of sixth overall pick Ashton Jeanty. Further details have emerged regarding the dynamic between Kelly and head coach Pete Carroll.
Many expected Kelly to receive a long leash in terms of handling the offense considering his contract and his track record at the NFL and college levels. As Ian Rapoport of NFL Network writes, however, Vegas’ offense in 2025 has been far different than any unit Kelly has led before. That is an illustration of the influence Carroll has yielded during his first year with the Raiders.
Per Rapoport, Kelly was “miffed” at the extent to which Carroll was “heavy-handed” with his role in directing the offense. Much of Vegas’ attack, opposing defensive coordinators have observed, has closely resembled what was in place during Carroll’s final season in Seattle. The Super Bowl-winning coach carrying over elements of his Seahawks schemes was always expected when he took the Raiders gig, but things have certainly not gone according to plan so far.
Trade acquisition Geno Smith reunited with Carroll this offseason. He has thrown an NFL-worst 13 interceptions, leading in large part to the 35-year-old posting a lower passer rating than any of his five Seahawks campaign. The coming Raiders offseason will once again be dominated by questions at the quarterback position. There is also a chance Carroll’s tenure could be in doubt even after one year in place.
Minority owner Tom Brady – well known to be a major voice in the Raiders’ decision-making – reportedly played a leading role in the Kelly hire. It will be interesting to see how Brady, owner Mark Davis and general manager John Spytek proceed with respect to Carroll’s status. That, in turn, will largely determine the team’s offensive coordinator for 2026.
Greg Olson will handle play-calling duties for the remainder of the season, one in which the Raiders would be expected (given their 2-9 record) to increasingly turn their attention to developing younger players. Largely speaking, that has not been the case to date with rookies other than Jeanty yet to receive major workloads. Rapoport notes there has been a “disconnect” based on Carroll’s mandate to compete right away and the reality of where Vegas stands in terms of talent on the roster.
The Raiders have lost five straight games, and they are among the teams which could be eliminated from playoff contention tomorrow. Moving forward, how (or if) Vegas manages to rebound on offense – along with Carroll’s impact in that regard – will be a storyline worth following.
Tom Brady Strongly Influenced Raiders’ Chip Kelly Hire; Latest On Pete Carroll
The Raiders have somehow regressed despite moving from the Gardner Minshew/Aidan O’Connell quarterback situation to Geno Smith, with the Antonio Pierce-to-Pete Carroll transition also failing to move the needle in the win column. One domino has already fallen in Las Vegas, as Chip Kelly is out as OC. More may well be positioned to topple soon.
Kelly had loomed as a Raiders OC target for two offseasons, being hired shortly after the team installed Carroll as HC. Minority owner Tom Brady is believed to have wielded strong influence in the Kelly hire, according to The Athletic’s Dianna Russini. This is unsurprising given how much power Brady is believed to have in Vegas, and Russini adds Mark Davis‘ preferred football czar is frustrated with the team’s overall performance.
Brady’s frustration likely contributed to the team’s decision to fire Kelly. It has now been three straight years of a Raiders OC being dismissed in-season. The team canned Mick Lombardi shortly after firing Josh McDaniels and GM Dave Ziegler in 2023, and Pierce booted Luke Getsy midway through the 2024 campaign. With Smith taking 10 sacks in an abysmal loss to the Browns, the Raiders acted early yet again. Kelly, who became the NFL’s highest-paid coordinator (at $6MM per year), is an NFL one-and-done once again. His most recent NFL post, as 49ers HC in 2016, ended after one year.
The Raiders firing Kelly now strips Carroll from having the chance to make this move in the offseason. Such an effort occurring then would have given the veteran leader a chance to frame that move as a way to convince Brady, Davis and GM John Spytek positive 2026 change would take place. With the firing coming in November, will Carroll have a chance to return as HC in 2026?
Some around the NFL are wondering if Carroll will join Kelly as a Raiders one-and-done, per ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler. The oldest HC in NFL history, the 74-year-old sideline staple has not come especially close to being the floor-raising presence expected in Vegas.
The Raiders made a stark pivot to Carroll after losing out on Ben Johnson, a coach Brady aggressively pursued this offseason (though, the team was not believed to have made an offer to the now-Bears HC). The team is 2-9 and ranks 31st in scoring offense (a unit that ranks 32nd in EPA per play). While EPA slots Patrick Graham‘s defense 20th, the Raiders have lost six games by double figures and have only beaten the one-win Titans since what looks to be a fluky Week 1 triumph in New England.
Carroll, who also fired special teams coordinator Tom McMahon this month, is on a three-year contract that carries an option for a fourth season. Most HC deals cover five or six years, but Carroll’s age undoubtedly factored into the Raiders’ thinking upon designing this deal. No clear succession plan appeared to exist, and with the Raiders at two wins by Thanksgiving, it would shock if Carroll’s replacement was on staff.
Carroll also holds considerably less power than he did in Seattle, with Brady and Spytek heavily involved. Carroll held final roster say with the Seahawks; the 2024 Seattle change was partially structured around John Schneider receiving a chance to fully steer the ship. Brady is highly unlikely to be going anywhere, so the all-time QB great’s fingerprints figure to be on the coaching situation. Carroll, who sat out the 2024 season but became intrigued with the Raiders once Brady was approved as a part-owner, may well be coaching for his job down the stretch this season.
Raiders Fire ST Coordinator Tom McMahon
The Raiders have fired special teams coordinator Tom McMahon, per a team announcement.
Assistant special teams coach Derius Swinton II will take over the interim job. He previously was the special teams coordinator for the 49ers in 2016 and the Chargers in 2021.
McMahon arrived in Las Vegas in 2022 under new head coach Josh McDaniels. McDaniels was fired midway through his second season, but McMahon retained his job under Antonio Pierce. He also stayed on when Pete Carroll arrived in Las Vegas this offseason, but the Raiders’ special teams woes this season forced a change. Carroll and McMahon were seen exchanging words at the end of Thursday night’s loss to the Broncos, which included multiple special teams gaffes.
The Raiders’ 44.1 overall special teams grade from Pro Football Focus (subscription required) is the worst in the league, and their 35.2 net yards per punt ranks second-lowest, indicating poor punt coverage. The Raiders also have 24 missed tackles and 19 penalties on special teams this season, per PFF.
Las Vegas’ special teams units have also struggled in key moments. In Week 4, the Bears blocked a would-be game-winning field goal at the end of regulation, and in Week 9, the Raiders allowed a 54-yard kickoff that set up the Jaguars’ game-winning touchdown in overtime. This firing also comes after the Broncos blocked a punt deep in Raiders territory, giving the hosts a short field ahead of what turned into a game-winning field goal in a 10-7 victory.
McMahon, 56, began his coaching career at the college level in 1992 before jumping to the pros in 2007 as the Falcons’ assistant special teams coach. He was hired by the Rams as their special teams coordinator in 2009 and later held the same job for the Chiefs (2012), Colts (2013-2017) and Broncos (2018-2021).
Raiders Not Considering Major Changes
The Raiders have stumbled to a 2-5 start in the first year of the Pete Carroll–John Spytek era. Their last two losses, including a 31-0 shutout at the hands of the division rival Chiefs in Week 7, have come by a combined 65 points. While owner Mark Davis is displeased with the team’s results, he’s unsurprisingly not ready to pull the plug on either Carroll or Spytek (via Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal).
“You have to have faith in the people that you hired. And I do,” Davis said. “You’ve got to give them a chance to do the job.”
Notably, Davis hasn’t shown much faith in his head coaching hires in recent years. Since Jon Gruden‘s second run with the franchise came to an end during the 2021 season, four other head coaches have patrolled the sideline.
Although Rich Bisaccia guided the Raiders to a 7-5 record and a playoff berth in the wake of Gruden’s resignation, his time with the organization ended after a wild-card round loss to the Bengals. The Raiders then turned to Josh McDaniels, who went 9-16 before the Raiders gave him the ax in 2023. Interim choice Antonio Pierce took the team to a 5-4 finish as McDaniels’ replacement, leading to a promotion to the full-time post. However, on the heels of a 4-13 showing last year, they dismissed Pierce.
After the Raiders let go of Pierce and GM Tom Telesco, new minority owner Tom Brady joined Davis in taking on a key role in the franchise’s search for replacements. Spytek’s previous ties to Brady from their overlapping tenures with the University of Michigan and the Buccaneers helped him land the job as Telesco’s successor. Ben Johnson, then the Lions’ offensive coordinator and now the Bears’ head coach, was considered a strong candidate to take over for Pierce. Johnson picked the Bears, though the Raiders were not believed to have made Johnson an offer before handing the reins to Carroll.
While Carroll is the oldest head coach in NFL history (at 74), he’s also easily the Raiders’ most established hire since Gruden. He was eminently successful in his previous stop in Seattle, and Carroll’s role in Geno Smith‘s late-career breakthrough with the Seahawks helped lead the quarterback to Las Vegas. The Raiders traded for Smith and then extended him during the offseason, but those decisions look regrettable so far.
Over his first seven games as a Raider, Smith has thrown seven touchdowns against 10 interceptions en route to the league’s 30th-ranked QBR. He struggled enough in Kansas City that the Raiders benched him for Kenny Pickett. That move didn’t provide a spark during a listless showing in which the team mustered just 95 total yards.
While the Raiders are now on a bye, it’ll be a surprise if they don’t continue with Smith when they face the Jaguars in Week 9. Just as the Raiders are exercising patience with Carroll and Spytek, they’re likely to do the same with Smith. It’ll help Smith’s cause if injured tight end Brock Bowers, who has missed three straight games with a knee injury, returns in Week 9.
Geno Smith, Pete Carroll Discussed QB’s Seahawks Contract Frustration In 2024; Smith Expected Raiders Pursuit
After making a push for a Seahawks extension last year and not receiving it, Geno Smith admitted he felt out of place in Seattle. The three-year starter also played for a coaching staff that did not bring him in; that proved to be a significant factor regarding Smith’s 2024 approach and his long-term future in the Pacific Northwest.
Previously mentioned as having talked to Pete Carroll during his final Seahawks season, Smith discussed contract frustration with his former HC. This was an interesting strategy, seeing as Carroll held final roster say when Smith had signed his three-year, $75MM deal in 2023. But the communication between Smith and Carroll, whom the Seahawks had fired after the 2023 season, proved important.
“I was frustrated with my situation there. I was severely underpaid and thinking, ‘I should be getting the market or something close to it,’” Smith said, via SI.com’s Albert Breer. “I had talks with John Schneider, and he had talks with the higher-ups, and it just wasn’t gonna happen. And it disappointed me so much, and I didn’t know who to reach out to or to talk to. So I reached out to coach [Carroll], and he was there for me.”
Going into his third season as Seattle’s starter, Smith pushed for an offseason raise. With two years left on the deal agreed to during Carroll’s final year in charge, the Seahawks rebuffed their starting QB and kept him on the $25MM-per-year contract. Smith entered last season as the NFL’s 20th-highest-paid passer.
Smith’s age hurt his chances of landing a market-value deal, though frustration surfacing in 2024 made sense due to the contracts given out last year. Middling QBs Trevor Lawrence, Jordan Love and Tua Tagovailoa had each entered the $50MM-per-year club. All three more that doubled Smith in AAV. Smith’s Seahawks deal was also well south of the contracts Daniel Jones and Derek Carr were playing on at that point, and the Seattle pact morphed into a pay-as-you-go structure after 2023. But with the Seahawks controlling his rights through the 2025 season, he had little option but to play out the 2024 campaign on the lower-middle-class deal.
Carroll and Smith still texted throughout the season, Breer adds, and the QB saw the Super Bowl-winning HC’s Raiders arrival as a clear sign a reunion would commence. The Seahawks traded Smith to the Raiders for a third-round pick, with the team having offered him a deal in the ballpark of the three-year, $100.5MM proposal Sam Darnold later accepted. Schneider said the Smith negotiations did not last long, leading to the March trade pivot.
“When Carroll signed here, I knew he would be coming for me, and it was a matter of time before that happened,” Smith said, via ESPN.com’s Ryan McFadden. “The other options [I had], I kind of took them off the table. I looked at their offers, and they were decent offers, but I wanted to be with coach Carroll.”
Smith joined the Raiders after their failed Matthew Stafford trade pursuit, and after minority owner Tom Brady was believed to be uninterested in Darnold as a free agent. Rather than give strong consideration to a Carroll-Russell Wilson reunion, the Raiders made the Smith trade days before free agency. A month later, the parties agreed on a two-year, $75MM extension.
This is a markup from Smith’s Seattle terms, though it comes after the cap spiked by nearly $55MM from 2023-25. Between Smith’s 2023 Seattle contract and his 2025 Vegas agreement, a host of QB deals transpired. As a result, Smith entered this season as the NFL’s 17th-highest-paid passer. The Raiders did move him past Darnold and Baker Mayfield among the league’s middle-class QB1 sector, and Smith received far more fully guaranteed ($58.5MM) than Darnold had from the Seahawks ($37.5MM). Though, Darnold can lock in an additional $17.5MM if on the Seahawks’ roster by mid-February.
Even if Smith (35 in October) is highly unlikely to land an upper-crust QB deal, he has completed a career revival after a nomadic period as a backup. The league thought so little of him in 2019 that the Seahawks cut him to reorganize their roster that August. Although Seattle re-signed Smith soon after to back up Wilson, the team rostered him for $870K in 2019.
Smith did not join the Seahawks initially until May 2019, admitting (via McFadden) he considered retirement after his Jets stay turned into backup gigs with the Giants and Chargers. Workout partners Antonio Brown and Thaddeus Lewis were among those to talk him out of that route. That became good advice, even as Smith settled for low-end deals ($1.19MM in 2020, $1.21MM in 2021) to back up Wilson in the years that followed. Smith’s breakout 2022 season came while he was attached to a one-year, $3.5MM deal — as he needed to beat out trade pickup Drew Lock to succeed Wilson.
The Raiders are 1-2 under Smith, and the extension gives the team flexibility to continue pursuing a younger upgrade again next year. The Smith-Carroll duo represents a high-profile Raiders stopgap solution.
“I finally got my team,” Smith said, via McFadden. “I always felt like I was trying to replace Russell, and you can never replace all the great things that he did. So I never felt like Seattle was my team. Also, I didn’t feel like I fit the aesthetic of the Seattle organization. The Raiders just fit me.“