Not much of anything went Sin City‘s way during the NFL’s 2024 season, to say the least. The Las Vegas Raiders running back room continuously magnified why letting Josh Jacobs walk in free agency was a tragic mistake. Quarterbacks Gardner Minshew and Aidan O’Connell were unable to make much of a positive impact all year. All-Pro wideout Davante Adams asked to be shipped off to another club. In the end, the Silver and Black posted a record of 4-12, hiring Pete Carroll to pick up the pieces.
But make no mistake: Carroll didn’t become the head coach of the Raiders to start a rebuild. Instead, he’s ready to win now.
“We’re starting right now, going for it immediately,” Las Vegas’ new head coach said during his introductory press conference.
The problem is, winning isn’t easy in the National Football League. Much more so when every other team in your division is fresh off of a trip to the postseason.
With that in mind, Las Vegas will have to stack up talent – in bunches – if they wish to stand any chance of winning right out the gates. And the best way to closest-guarantee immediate success is by adding pre-existing established talent throughout the NFL, whether through signings or trading with another franchise.
Luckily, free agency is right around the corner. Even more fortunately, the Raiders head into the offseason with $92.5 million in available cap; the second-most league-wide.
These are the three offseason acquisitions that make the most sense for Pete Carroll’s vision.
Offseason acquisitions that just make sense for Pete Carroll and the Las Vegas Raiders
Adding Najee Harris to the backfield
Being able to effectively run the football isn’t something Pete Carroll takes lightly. Carroll reminded everyone of that last week, noting he plans to establish the ground-game early and often.
“Boy, it comes back to running the football,” Carroll noted when explaining how to build a successful team around a quarterback.
“Look at the clubs that are, you know, look at what Danny Campbell’s done. We are going to keep on controlling the football with those long drives that they are capable of. The function and the execution of the game are really built around being able to run it.”
To run the ball as effectively as Carroll speaks of, there needs to be a premier back, or two, available on the roster. As things stand, the Raiders don’t have any of those; not since Josh Jacobs’ departure this past year.
Najee Harris, however, gives the Raiders that presence.
Selected 24th-overall in the 2021 NFL Draft, Harris has rushed for 1,000-plus yards every season since entering the National Football League. The 26-year-old has also posted at least six rushing touchdowns during each individual campaign, adding 1,149 yards and six touchdowns through the air during his career as a whole.
Some may be asking themselves if Harris is truly capable of leading an effective rushing attack. The answer is yes, as the NFL’s 2024 season proved. As did the ’23 and ’22 seasons. With Harris leading the charge on the ground, these past three years have landed the Pittsburgh Steelers in the top-half of the league via rushing yards per contest.
While Harris certainly isn’t a ‘speedy’ back, he’s fantastic at finding holes, maneuvering through the line of scrimmage, and plowing through after contact. One may use a similar description with Jacobs, who became a first-team All-Pro in 2022.
In 2024, Harris was responsible for 63 forced missed tackles; the fifth-most across the NFL. Harris totaled the eighth-most in 2023 and sixth-most in 2022.
Nothing but proven consistency from Najee Harris.
A reunion with Pete Carroll and Geno Smith
Acquisitions–not free agent signings.
How much sense does Pete Carroll reuniting with Geno Smith make? It would be easy enough to write a 1,000-word article solely about why this pairing is meant to be; that’s how much sense it makes.
For starters, Pete Carroll thinks highly of Smith. Very highly.
“He’s taught me so much, and I admire him for the way he’s handled the competitive part of things,” Carroll said of his former quarterback. “He’s taught us about belief in yourself and how powerful that is. As clear as an illusion of anybody that I can ever remember.”
Carroll even went as far as to call Smith one of his “All-time favorite guys.”
“It’s a real memorable span of time there with one of my all-time favorite guys,” the Super Bowl winning head coach claimed.
There’s no shortage of things Carroll loves about the 34-year-old signal caller. The intelligence, grittiness, leadership and ability to command an offense. His drive and refusal to ever give up, no matter the current situation he’s faced with.
These are traits that every head coach wants their man under center to have. That stands true for every offensive coordinator as well.
Some believe Chip Kelly‘s system requires a quarterback with mobility. Smith comes well-equipped with that. Some raise concerns over the age of Smith. In truth, having a quarterback 34 years of age is picture-perfect for a team looking to win immediately while simultaneously planning for the future, just as the Las Vegas Raiders are doing.
The perfect “bridge quarterback.”
Of course, none of that changes the fact that, in order for the Raiders to acquire Smith, they’d have to trade for him. And that means Seattle would first have to agree to move their starting signal caller.
If the Seahawks are unwilling to make that sacrifice, none of this matters. However, if they are, a Pete Carroll, Geno Smith reunion shouldn’t surprise anybody. It just makes sense.
Keeping Robert Spillane in a Las Vegas Raiders uniform
Adding Spillane’s name to this list almost feels cheeky, but it isn’t for no reason. After all, Sin City only has so much cap room because players such as Robert Spillane are off of the books.
Spillane is a free agent, and the Raiders simply cannot afford to lose him if they wish to win now. He’s not only been arguably the best player on Las Vegas’ defense over the past two years, Maxx Crosby aside, but he happens to play the single most important position on the defensive side of the ball: off-ball linebacker.
This entire section could be dedicated to the importance of the off-ball linebacker position. Since the year 2000, and even prior, each and every defense that can be considered ‘great’ has had one common denominator: there’s been a great off-ball linebacker.
2000 Baltimore Ravens? Ray Lewis. 2002 Tampa Bay Buccaneers? Derrick Brooks. Any defense from the New England Patriots Dynasty? Junior Seau, Mike Vrabel, Willie McGinest, Tedy Bruschi, Dont’a Hightower, Jerod Mayo. 2017 Jacksonville Jaguars? Telvin Smith, Paul Posluszny, Myles Jack. 2023 Baltimore Ravens? Roquan Smith.
Even Pete Carroll’s legendary ‘Legion of Boom’ was led by linebackers Bobby Wagner and K.J. Wright.
Not-so-coincidentally, the Raiders have enjoyed their best defense in two decades under their best off-ball linebacker in two decades. In 2023, the team ranked top-15 in both least total yardage and points surrendered for the first time since 2002. During both their ’23 and ’24 campaigns, the Silver and Black ranked top-15 in least yardage surrendered. This was the first time the team achieved this feat in back-to-back seasons for the first time since ’98-’99.
This couldn’t have been achieved without Spillane’s help.
In 2023, during his first year with the Raiders, Spillane totaled 96 solo tackles; the 12th-most among all linebackers. He upped that mark to 110 during his ’24 campaign; the third-most at his position.
Spillane posted the sixth-highest grade against the run among all linebackers during both seasons in Sin City, totaling 5.5 sacks and five interceptions in the meantime.
Truly an invaluable defensive piece.
*Top Photo: The Sporting Tribune