The Las Vegas Raiders hired head coach Pete Carroll this offseason because he was the antithesis of those who led the team through their recent struggles. Instead of a young, offensive-minded guy like Josh McDaniels or a first-time head coach like Antonio Pierce, Mark Davis countered with Carroll.
Especially in an AFC West division that touted experienced, championship-winning leaders like Andy Reid, Sean Payton and Jim Harbaugh, Carroll seemed like the obvious choice once Ben Johnson and Liam Coen were both off the table, given his Super Bowl ring and 18 years as an NFL head coach.
But Las Vegas has been a dumpster fire during the 2025 NFL season, and even in a year when the mighty Kansas City Chiefs have taken a handful of missteps, the Raiders find themselves in a distant fourth place in the division. For Davis, that might be grounds for firing Carroll.
Raiders should fire Pete Carroll if he goes 0-6 against AFC West
Pierce took over as the head coach of the Silver and Black in large part due to the fact that his charisma and connection with the Raiders' culture captivated the fan base and truly resonated with the players in the building.
However, from a pure football standpoint, Pierce earned the job because he went 3-1 against the AFC West. He went 2-3 against the rest of Las Vegas' opponents, but because he went above .500 and won three straight against the division, he rightfully earned an opportunity to lead the team.
After all, NFL franchises should be catering toward winning their division, as it is the surest way to make the postseason and have any meaningful success. But when Pierce went 0-6 against the AFC West in 2024, that, among other things, was all Davis needed to see to give him the axe.
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Carroll, despite the winning pedigree he brought to Las Vegas, is 0-3 against the division. The team suffered a lopsided primetime loss to the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 2, got shut out in Week 7 by the Chiefs, and lost again in front of a national audience to the Denver Broncos in Week 10.
Among the litany of issues that are plaguing the Raiders, losing all three of their AFC West contests in ugly fashion might be the biggest one. Davis has proven that he won't stand for this, as the four coaches that he has fired were a combined 4-16 against the division the year they were let go.
Las Vegas still has three rivalry games remaining, with the Chargers, Broncos and Chiefs on the schedule in Weeks 13, 14 and 18, respectively. If Carroll gets swept again or only wins one of these games, the Raiders should fire him for falling behind yet again and failing to right this unruly ship.