The Las Vegas Raiders suffered their fifth blowout loss in the first 10 games of the 2025 NFL season on Monday. This time, it came at the hands of the below .500 Dallas Cowboys, who waltzed into Allegiant Stadium and came out with a 33-16 victory.
After two straight close losses, this was an incredible letdown for Pete Carroll and the team. After striking first and taking a 6-3 lead into the second quarter, the Raiders gave up three straight touchdowns in the second period and never got within striking distance again.
It seemed like Dallas was getting whatever it wanted on offense, and the Las Vegas offense provided no resistance against a Cowboys defense that has been largely unimpressive this season. It was truly all bad for the Raiders, but Dallas head coach Brian Schottenheimer rubbed more salt in the wound.
Brian Schottenheimer admits he took it easy on Raiders at end of game
Schottenheimer, of course, knows Carroll quite well. Not only did Carroll coach against Schottenheimer's legendary father, Marty, but Carroll also employed the younger Schottenheimer as the offensive coordinator for the Seattle Seahawks from 2018-2020.
When asked in his post-game media availability about whether he saw or talked with Carroll before or after the game, Schottenheimer took a moment to honor his former employer and talk peripherally about their discussions.
"I saw him post-game. We just had a chance to catch up," Schottenheimer said. "Again, he's been so good to me. We just shared a few things, he told me how proud he was of me, and I thanked him for everything he's done for me and my career. I really do. I model so many things after him."
He was also asked whether his relationship with Carroll had to do with the Cowboys not running up the score at the end, as everyone in the stadium and watching the broadcast knew that Dallas called off the dogs in the fourth quarter.
"Absolutely," Schottenheimer said. "I wasn't gonna try to score there. Don't need to. Too much respect for the game, too much respect for Pete. Walk out of here with a great win, and a great team win."
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While that is admirable by Schottenheimer, it just feels so terrible for Raiders fans. Not only did the team get walloped on national television by a team that almost everyone in the league grows tired of, but Las Vegas had pity taken upon them in their home stadium. Ouch.
Of course, reporters and Schottenheimer were referencing the Cowboys' choice to make four consecutive kneel downs from the Las Vegas 6-yard line when there was still 2:31 on the clock and the Raiders had all three timeouts.
They even took a knee on fourth down instead of kicking a field goal, which gave Las Vegas the ball back with 36 seconds left. The Raiders then took a knee in step, and the game was over. Unfortunately, such matters have become a frequent occurrence for Carroll's team this season.
The Indianapolis Colts put in their backup quarterback for the fourth quarter against Las Vegas in Week 4, and the Kansas City Chiefs replaced Patrick Mahomes with Gardner Minshew in the third quarter.
Kansas City also took pity on the Raiders, not throwing it once in the final period and taking a turnover on downs instead of kicking a field goal in Las Vegas territory. The Chiefs, too, took three consecutive knees and punted it with over 2 minutes left when Las Vegas had all three timeouts.
Not only did Carroll get outclassed this week by his apprentice, Schottenheimer, but it's not the first time such a thing has happened this year. In Week 3, Carroll and the Raiders got blown out by Dan Quinn and the Washington Commanders, who didn't even have their starting quarterback.
To make matters worse, Carroll has also had laps run around him by some of the coaching candidates that Raider Nation favored over him, like Ben Johnson of the Chicago Bears and Liam Coen of the Jacksonville Jaguars, both of whom edged past Carroll's Raiders in close wins.
It is one thing to lose close games and show a bit of promise for the future. But the Raiders continue to get blown out and have pity taken upon them, which is both demoralizing and humiliating. Something has to change in Las Vegas, or things will continue to be a circus.