The Raiders were supposed to be the favorites to land Ben Johnson as their next head coach, but despite the hype, Johnson quietly chose the Chicago Bears on Monday afternoon.
Now the Raiders will have to regroup, and according to The Athletic’s Vic Tafur, there’s already a new name to fill the front runner void left by Johnson.
“The Raiders have to turn to their alternatives, and former Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll is believed to be the Raiders’ top option, according to league sources,” Tafur reported on Monday night. “Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn is also believed to be a strong candidate, but many around the league expect him to wind up with the New Orleans Saints, the team he played for and coached for, or the New York Jets, who he also played for.”
After all the noise around Johnson, it’s hard to feel confident about anything reported on the Raiders’ coaching search, but it’s worth noting that several insiders have been suggesting Carroll would be the backup plan if Johnson left Tom Brady at all the altar.
Prior to all the speculation around Johnson, Sports Illustrated insider Hondo Carpenter talked about the qualities he believed Tom Brady and company were going to prioritize in their head coaching search.
“I believe what the Raiders are doing is I believe that their goal is… they want an experienced head coach who’s going to come in and grip this franchise and take it somewhere,” Carpenter said on the Las Vegas Raiders Insider podcast.
“You may have no doubt that’s exactly what they want. I have zero doubt. That’s not speculative,” Hondo continued. “They know what they want. That’s why I think they’re going to end up with an experienced head coach.”
Safe to say, Carroll matches the above description a lot better than Johnson would have.
If Carroll ends up getting the job, it will be interesting to see who he can bring with him to turn around the offense.
Defensively, the Raiders should be fine if they can re-sign some of their players and keep Maxx Crosby, but who’s going to be the coordinator that’s able to breathe life into an offense currently led by Aidan O’Connell at quarterback?
And as a side note, the Hendon Hooker to Las Vegas rumors officially died today, as well.
