Raiders Saga Takes New Twist With Rumored Pete Carroll Sa...

By Matthew Schmidt

Contributing Sports Writer

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The Las Vegas Raiders fired Chip Kelly late last month in the midst of a disastrous season, and there have been rumors circulating that Kelly and head coach Pete Carroll did not see eye to eye.

In fact, some have even speculated that Carroll wasn't even letting Kelly run the offense, because the Raiders' offense looked nothing like previous units that Kelly has conducted at his various stops in the past.

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However, Raiders insider Hondo Carpenter has pushed back against the notion that Carroll was calling the shots, saying that Kelly was absolutely allowed to call plays.

"I know that this was Chip Kelly's offense," Carpenter said. "He was in charge of his offense. ... Chip Kelly was the play-caller. It was Chip Kelly's offense. ... Any type of reporting that Pete meddled or Pete did anything to sabotage it, I’m not calling the reporter out, but I’m calling out whoever the source is."

Las Vegas hired Carroll as its head coach in January and then brought in Kelly as its offensive coordinator in early February, just a week-and-a-half after Kelly helped lead the Ohio State Buckeyes to a national championship as Ryan Days offensive coordinator.

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Kelly coached the Philadelphia Eagles for three seasons between 2013 and 2015 and also coached the San Francisco 49ers for one year in 2016. He went 28-35 throughout that stretch, making one playoff appearance with the Eagles. He went a miserable 2-14 during his lone campaign with the 49ers and then returned to the collegiate level, where he has spent most of his time.

The 62-year-old is most known for his time as Oregon head coach between 2009 and 2012. He also served as UCLA's head coach between 2018 and 2023.

Meanwhile, Carroll experienced considerable success during his 14-year run with the Seattle Seahawks, which spanned between 2010 and 2023. He went 137-89-1 in Seattle, leading the Seahawks to a pair of Super Bowl appearances as well as a Super Bowl championship.

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Carroll's debut campaign in Vegas, however, has been nothing short of an unmitigated disaster, as the Raiders are just 2-10 and have lost six games in a row.

It stands to reason that Carroll could be a one-and-done in the desert.

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