The Las Vegas Raiders have been the NFL's worst team during the 2025 NFL season, as they sit at 2-14 despite entering the year with playoff aspirations. Things have not worked out the way that head coach Pete Carroll envisioned, and there is plenty of blame to go around for the nightmare campaign.
Carroll shoulders plenty of the blame for his reluctance to focus on player development when it was clear the team was not ready to compete. Meanwhile, the offensive line and Geno Smith also hold some blame for their atrocious play throughout the year.
First-year general manager John Spytek also deserves part of the blame for the Raiders' poorly constructed roster, even though his shortcomings have been largely underblown or flown under the radar.
Las Vegas' chief decision-maker focused on adding players to short-term deals in free agency, however, very few of those moves wound up working out. Carroll, who wanted to compete right away, recently acknowledged what Raiders fans knew about his relationship with Spytek all along.
Pete Carroll admits that he had to work through things with John Spytek
The Raiders' leadership duo never quite seemed to be on the same page this year, as it appeared that Spytek was building the roster with a long-term vision, Meanwhile, Carroll was fixated on competing immediately and wouldn't back down from that stance.
It is hard to blame either party, as the former is a first-time general manager who is just 45 years old, while the latter, at 74, is the oldest head coach in NFL history and has a strong track record. Las Vegas' head coach admitted that the duo took some time to get on the same page.
"I'll probably talk more about it when we're done, but right from the start, it was really clear the intent of how we wanted to do this and wanted to work together on everything. But there's things that we hadn't had a chance to come together on, so we had to work our way through stuff. And we're way better now than we were at the start," Carroll said. "I want to make sure that I can complement all that John brings, and I need him to do the same for me. And so, that's a work in progress, and it's relationships. You got to work hard at it, and I love the guy. I think he's bright as hell, he's principled, he's strong, he's got integrity, he's got character. I mean, he's got all of the right stuff to be a fantastic general manager in this league."
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While it is shocking to hear a head coach acknowledge that he wasn't always on the same page with the general manager, it is not a shock to Raider Nation, and they can actually appreciate this bit of honesty.
Spytek is clearly focused on building the roster with a long-term future in mind, while Carroll opted to focus on playing veterans and trying to win over developing young talent, even when the postseason was well out of reach.
Of the 11 rookies Spytek selected in his first-ever draft as a general manager, nine of whom made the final roster, only Ashton Jeanty received consistent playing time throughout the season. While others have flashed or played sparingly, the team's young players haven't exactly been given many chances.
Darien Porter joined Jeanty as the only other rookie to play even 50% of the offensive or defensive snaps. However, Porter did not cross that threshold until Week 17, and likely would not have had Kyu Blu Kelly not suffered a season-ending injury.
Carroll also sounds like a head coach who is uncertain about his future with the team, which also is not much of a shock to Raiders fans. There will be plenty to address in the offseason, and while Spytek's job seems safe, Las Vegas' first order of business will be deciding the fate of their head coach, particularly if they have the opportunity to draft a rookie quarterback.