LAS VEGAS, Nev.– If there was any doubt that the Las Vegas Raiders are indeed rebuilding, Sunday’s loss to the New York Giants and all but securing the No. 1 overall pick should remove that doubt. Entering the season, Las Vegas’ front office was reluctant to admit it was rebuilding.
Sitting Brock Bowers, Jeremy Chinn, and Maxx Crosby in the days leading up to their Week 17 matchup against the Giants, then losing in such a convincing fashion, has made the smokescreens and the coaching staff’s denials of the Raiders’ current state meaningless.
Watch Carroll discuss below.
The Raiders’ latest loss was expected, as they are not good enough to beat any team in the National Football League without Bowers, Chinn, and Crosby on the field. Las Vegas has one of the worst rosters in the league, even with those players healthy. Without those players, the Raiders are bad.
This brings about several questions for the Raiders‘ front office during the offseason. In addition to selecting with what is presumably the No. 1 pick in the draft, the Raiders will also need to take a close look at their roster and the players available in free agency as they look to improve this offseason.
The Raiders‘ front office will also have to decide what to do with Pete Carroll. Las Vegas has searched for a head coach for each of the past two offseasons; firing Carroll would make it the third consecutive offseason. Las Vegas has a long way to go, and it is unclear if Carroll can get them there.
Carroll was brought in to help turn things around. Yet after losing their 10th consecutive game and their 14th out of 15, the Raiders are worse than they were last season. Even worse, Carroll and the Raiders’ coaching staff hardly played essentially an entire draft class, almost the entire season.
After saying he expected to win at least 10 games during the offseason, Carroll’s expectations were quickly shattered when the Raiders went 2-6. Following Sunday’s loss to the Giants, Carroll explained what went wrong for him and the Raiders this season.
“We did not win a game in the preseason. We were fortunate to tie with Seattle at the end of the preseason. We just have not found our wins. We have not found a way to win. We started off with a tremendous game right off the bat in New England,” Carroll said.
“Obviously, look at their team now. They are having a fantastic season. That was a pretty solid win for us. Brock got hurt in that game. I do not think we adapted well to that. So, we went through a few weeks until we got to the [Tennessee] Titans game and got the next win. It seemed like forever.
“I had no place in my mind to see this, either. Just trying to figure out how to go one week at a time, come back and find the focus to work really hard, give it a really good shot, and see if we can play some good football. I do not doubt these guys one bit.”
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