It's a new day for the Las Vegas Raiders as Pete Carroll was officially introduced as the franchise's next head coach. The Raiders had a packed house at their headquarters in Henderson, Nevada, for Carroll's introductory press conference.
While in attendance were family and reporters, there were a few notable guests. Former Raiders and Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch was among the attendees.
Marshawn Lynch in the building as well to watch his former Head Coach in Seattle, Pete Carroll, is introduced as the Raiders head coach.#RaiderNation pic.twitter.com/xDQq511Spz
— Dominic Lavoie (@dominicjlavoie) January 27, 2025
However, Lynch couldn't contain his excitement. During one of Carroll's answers, the former Pro Bowl let out a loud "RAIDERS!" chant. Carroll didn't seem to catch onto the fact that it was Lynch who did the chant but he appreciated the enthusiasm.
Notably, Lynch played under Carroll for seven seasons in Seattle. He's also from Oakland and has been a huge Raiders fan his whole life, in addition to playing with the team in 2017 and 2018.
The fact that Lynch is showing up to his former coach's press conference is a great sign for the Raiders. It's clear that Carroll is able to form great relationships with his players. For the first time in a long time, it feels like there's real excitement around what the Raiders are doing.
Former head coach Antonio Pierce famously did a "RAIDERS!" chant at his introductory press conference. While Carroll didn't do that, he doesn't need to.
Carroll is from the Bay Area and grew up very close to the Raiders when they were in Oakland. Under Pierce, the Raiders embraced their Los Angeles roots but under Carroll, they could embrace their Bay Area roots, especially if Lynch is going to be hanging out.
It remains to be seen if Carroll will be the one to finally turn the Raiders around, but there's clearly a lot of excitement in the building right now. If he can maintain that excitement, brighter days could be ahead for the Silver and Black.