The Las Vegas Raiders needed to make drastic changes after a four-win campaign in 2024, and owner Mark Davis brought just that.
Not only did the team bring in new general manager John Spytek and head coach Pete Carroll this offseason, but they traded for veteran quarterback Geno Smith. He will be a massive upgrade compared to who the Raiders had under center a season ago.
Smith and Carroll already have a rapport with each other that dates back to their days in Seattle, so expectations are cautiously high around this Las Vegas team heading into the season. However, not everyone is buying that the Raiders are a dramtically improved team.
The Geno Smith and Pete Carroll connection is already underrated
CBS Sports' Cody Benjamin recently ranked the best new head coach and quarterback tandems going into the 2025 NFL season. The Raiders received mixed reviews about both Smith and Carroll.
"It's very possible these ex-Seahawks partners are past their prime. Smith is 34 and endured two uneven seasons after his award-winning 2022 breakout in Seattle. Carroll is 73, spent 2024 away from the sidelines and hasn't led a playoff victory in six years," Benjamin wrote. "And yet, if you're looking for a high floor this year, it's almost got to be the new faces of the Silver and Black. Though streaky, Geno still possesses the kind of big-play arm the Raiders haven't seen for years. Carroll, meanwhile, is a proven culture-builder whose infectious personality has the potential to bring the best out of unforeseen corners of the Las Vegas locker room."
Despite these inconsistent remarks regarding the Raiders' new tandem, Benjamin still ranked the team No. 3 out of the 13 pairings. While this is a pretty strong standing, Las Vegas was behind the Minnesota Vikings' J.J. McCarthy and Kevin O'Connell, as well as the Dallas Cowboys' Dak Prescott and Brian Schottenheimer.
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Considering that McCarthy has never played an NFL snap and Schottenheimer is a first-time head coach, the Raiders being ranked behind them is a bit disrespectful. Not only are Smith and Carroll both experienced veterans, but they have ample experience with each other, and no other tandem on the list can say that in this capacity.
O'Connell is certainly a quarterback whisperer of sorts, and Prescott is the best quarterback of the three, when healthy. However, Smith was a two-time Pro Bowler and the 2022 NFL Comeback Player of the Year under Carroll, and none of these other tandems have had that kind of success together.
Smith endured a bit of a dropoff in production during the 2024 season without Carroll by his side. But with the two reunited in Las Vegas, the Raiders could be one of the most improved teams in the NFL, and that would fall squarely on the shoulders of Smith and Carroll.
