It is no secret that, amid a Las Vegas Raiders season that has spiraled into the league’s worst record, Pete Carroll has fallen short of the win-now vision he laid out upon arrival. He brought a Hall of Fame résumé and the familiar “ComPETE” mantra.
Instead, critics argue the oldest head coach in NFL history has been overtaken by a league that no longer bends to his philosophy. The standings do not exactly disprove that claim.
Here we go again, Raider Nation…
Yet the Raiders have placed themselves in a uniquely complicated position. Any conventional organization would look at the roster’s talent deficit and the heavy lift required to restore respectability and conclude that the timeline does not match a coach in his mid-70s. But the Silver and Black are rarely conventional. Carroll is simply the latest in a revolving door of leaders unable to stabilize the franchise since Jon Gruden’s abrupt exit. The problem extends far beyond the headset; the organizational rot runs deeper than any one coach.
“What are you prepared to do?” — Jim Malone to Eliot Ness, The Untouchables
Tom Brady brought in general manager John Spytek as an ascending first-time boss, but the pursuit of Carroll always felt like a compromise after higher-priority coaching targets declined interest. The mismatch in vision has been evident, and the record reflects that uneasy marriage.
Now the franchise faces difficult questions. Do Brady and Spytek acknowledge the misalignment and move on? Or do they grant a decorated coach the time to instill culture and stabilize a roster in line for the No. 1 pick? Is Mark Davis prepared to authorize yet another change? And does Carroll deserve to determine his own ending?
The choices ahead are stark. What the Raiders decide in the coming weeks may determine whether this organization finally finds renewed hope—or simply extends its misery.
*Top Photo: Ramble Illustration/Getty Images