The End of an Era for the Las Vegas Raiders

The Pete Carroll era with the Las Vegas Raiders is reportedly coming to a close following the Week 18 game against the Kansas City Chiefs. After a challenging 2025 NFL season, the Silver and Black are expected to take a different path moving forward. On January 3, NFL insider Jordan Schultz reported that there is a strong expectation that Carroll will only last one season in Las Vegas, whether it ends with a dismissal or his own decision to step away.

The Raiders are preparing for an extensive coaching search, with minority owner Tom Brady playing a significant role in the process. This situation seems to give Carroll the option to either leave on his own terms or be fired. It remains to be seen what choice the veteran coach will make, as the team cannot afford another season under his leadership.

Raiders Linked to Chargers Coach

Once the Raiders officially decide to move on from Carroll, several names are expected to emerge in the coaching rumor mill. One name that stands out is Los Angeles Chargers defensive coordinator Jesse Minter. He has played a crucial role in transforming the Chargers into one of the NFL’s top defenses, even without a wealth of elite talent.

Minter is expected to attract strong interest this offseason, but the Raiders may have an unusual advantage. According to Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, there are connections between Brady and Minter that could work in the Raiders’ favor. Breer noted that Minter’s staff, which included arranged marriages with coordinators Chip Kelly and Pat Graham, never fully gelled. With Kelly already gone, the rest of the group is expected to be cleaned out after the game against the Chiefs.

“Brady and Spytek’s Michigan connection to Chargers defensive coordinator Jesse Minter, especially given the success of Mike Macdonald in Seattle (Minter and Macdonald worked in Baltimore together, and Minter succeeded Macdonald at Michigan), are worth noting,” Breer wrote.

Raiders Want to Lose in Week 18 Against the Chiefs

In addition to considering changes in leadership, the Raiders are also looking to secure the No. 1 pick by losing to the Chiefs. ESPN reporter Brooke Pryor shared insights into what the Raiders’ ownership, including Tom Brady, is thinking as they approach their final game of the 2025 season.

“[Raiders] ownership [is] telling the coaching staff and the players that they want the No. 1 overall pick above all else,” Pryor said in a video posted by ESPN on December 30. “Things have not gone well, but it leaves you with a sour taste in your mouth.”

“If you’re one of those Raiders players that is hearing from ownership, ‘Look, we don’t want you to win. It is better for us if you lose, and then we can focus on the future,’ especially because there are definitely guys in that locker room that are not a part of the Raiders’ future equation.”

“They don’t really care about the future, but Tom Brady and those owners, they would like to win. They would like to have that No. 1 overall pick when the draft is in Pittsburgh, just in a couple of months.”