Pete Carroll was hired by the Las Vegas Raiders this past offseason to raise the competitive level of the franchise and do it right away. A rebuilding team doesn't hire a 74-year-old head coach thinking about a long-term plan.
The Raiders are not more competitive with Carroll. They're somehow worse.
The Raiders' problems were on display for a Monday night audience. They wereabsolutely blown outat home by a Dallas Cowboys team that isn't great. Since an inexplicable Week 1 win over the New England Patriots, the Raiders are 1-8. The only win in that stretch came at home against the Tennessee Titans, who might be the only team definitively worse than the Raiders this season.
It's hard to believe, but the Raiders were more competitive with Antonio Pierce. He had a .346 winning percentage before he was fired. Carroll is at .200 in his first season, with a better quarterback than Pierce had to work with.
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The Raiders traded for Geno Smith, who was good with the Seattle Seahawks but has seen the bottom fall out this season. They drafted running back Ashton Jeanty with the sixth pick, which a rebuilding team shouldn't do, but the Raiders had a focus on incremental improvement right away. They gave Jeanty just two carries in the first half Monday and generally have underused him. Las Vegas made Chip Kelly the highest paid coordinator in NFL history, and the offense is worse. The Raiders ranked 29th in points scored and 27th in yards last season, and this season they're 30th in both of those categories. They're playing 33-year-old receiver Tyler Lockett, cut by the putrid Titans during this season, over some younger players on the roster. He's a Carroll favorite from their days in Seattle together. Like many of the Raiders' other moves, playing Lockett doesn't make much sense given the current state of the team.
It's not like the Raiders aren't used to losing, but a step back is really hard to process. The Raiders made win-now moves — or at the very least "improve-now" moves — even though they were never realistically climbing out of last place in a tough AFC West this season. They wanted a better product, even if they couldn't surpass theKansas City Chiefs, Los Angeles Chargers or Denver Broncos. Getting worse this season is an absolute failure.
Carroll has had a great career, which includes a fantastic run at USC before turning the Seahawks into champions. He has a strong argument for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. But he'll be 75 next season. The Raiders have made no tangible improvement with him. It's hard to figure out how the future looks any brighter with Carroll in charge. Maybe an offseason building a better roster would help turn things around for Carroll in 2026, but there's a lot of blind hope in trusting that plan.
That's assuming there is some plan in Las Vegas. After what we've seen since the start of 2025, it's hard to believe there is a clear long-term plan, or that the Raiders could execute it even if there was one.
Panic meter:It feels helpless for the Raiders, and that might be the case for a while
Did Sam Darnold get exposed?
The story about Darnold all offseason wasn't the first 16 games of last season for the Minnesota Vikings, in which he was excellent. It was all about the final two games when he struggled and the Vikings lost an NFC North title game vs. the Detroit Lions and then a playoff game against the Los Angeles Rams.
The skeptics will be out again. Darnold threw four interceptions and the Seattle Seahawks lost 21-19 to the Rams on Sunday. With even one fewer interception, the Seahawks probably would have won. Darnold made some hurried throws under pressure and it cost his team.
That doesn't mean Darnold has turned into a pumpkin. He has had a strong first season with the Seahawks and was a big reason they were off to a 7-2 start. Even on Sunday, he rallied the Seahawks and put them in position for a 61-yard field-goal attempt to win as time expired. Seattle isn't going anywhere. And while Darnold won't be immune to more bad games, there will be an overreaction to his first terrible game this season.
Panic meter:If Darnold has another meltdown, then we can talk
Raheem Morris might be in trouble
The Atlanta Falcons probably didn't have Super Bowl dreams coming into this season. But they certainly expected better than this.
The Falcons blew a late lead and lost in overtime to the Carolina Panthers on Sunday. The Falcons fell to an incredibly disappointing 3-7. Even worse, Michael Penix Jr. suffered what was likely a season-ending knee injury. Kirk Cousins has mostly been bad since joining the Falcons and it's tough to imagine he saves Atlanta's season.
What's more likely is plenty more losses and some tough questions about Morris' future as the team's head coach.
Morris didn't post a winning season in his first two with the Falcons, and a third straight losing season seems inevitable. His record is 15-23. This season it's not just a losing record but a feeling that the Falcons should have been much better. That won't reflect well on Morris when decisions are made at the end of the season.
Panic meter:Unless Cousins hits the fountain of youth, Morris shouldn't feel safe
Buccaneers playing with fire in NFC South
The 6-4 Tampa Bay Buccaneers have losses to four good teams, but they're still four losses. And in Week 12, the Bucs are underdogs at the Los Angeles Rams. That could be a fifth loss, and a real chance the Carolina Panthers go into Week 13 ahead of Tampa Bay in the NFC South. Carolina is 6-5 and faces the San Francisco 49ers in Week 12.
The Buccaneers haven't beaten the very best opponents on their schedule. They have overcome injuries and had a strong 6-2 start, but two straight losses and a tough game this weekend have changed the divisional race. The Buccaneers have a soft remaining schedule after the Rams game, which helps. But the Panthers are sticking around. The Buccaneers and Panthers have two meetings to go, in Weeks 16 and 18, and they will likely be very important.
Panic meter:Bucs should be fine, but they can't get swept by Carolina
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