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Tuesday, May 27, 2025 | 2 a.m.
Editor's note: Este artículo está traducido al español.
A nonrostered Raiders’ rookie minicamp invitee hunched over on a sideline cooler and vomited within the first few periods, and about 30 minutes into one of the first on-field sessions run by new coach Pete Carroll.
The 73-year-old coach has been known for running challenging, fast-paced practices for more than two decades, and apparently hasn’t slowed them down following a year off. The Raiders are now familiarizing themselves with Carroll’s approach as offseason team activities commenced on Monday May 19 and continue today through the end of next week.
The team’s most prominent players have praised the “juice” Carroll brings and the standards he stresses on the Raiders’ practice fields in Henderson.
“For being an older coach, he’s been just on fire,” tight end Brock Bowers said. “Just lighting everybody up and really bringing that energy. It’s been really cool to see.”
Granted, many people shared a lot of the same superlatives about coach Antonio Pierce’s practices — myself included. But Carroll’s are at a different level, and that’s no disrespect to Pierce.
Carroll’s practices appear more action-packed than any of his four head-coaching predecessors since the Raiders moved to Las Vegas in 2020.
That’s especially true considering this is just preliminary work with his players in shorts, jerseys and helmets. The Raiders, and the rest of the NFL, are still nearly three months away from being permitted to wear pads and go full contact.
“I just feel like I’ve got to help pull everything I can from them every step of the way, every play that they take,” Carroll said of his players. “And so, whatever I can do to try to add to that, I’ve got to do a good, judicious job of pushing them, challenging them and pointing out the stuff that we need to get better at, all on an ongoing basis.”
Some of Carroll’s most famous practice tactics at previous spots included “Competition Tuesdays” at the University of Southern California from 2001-2009 where all his players had to earn their roles on a weekly basis. While with the Seattle Seahawks from 2010-2023, he was often seen running or playing catch with his players before the horn sounded for the start of practice.
Carroll said he made some “subtle” changes to his practice regimen with the Raiders, but some of the same characteristics remain evident.
At rookie minicamp earlier in the month, he more or less ran through drills with the defensive backs — showing off his backpedaling and hand-placement form to prized prospect Darien Porter.
When longtime pupil/quarterback Geno Smith threw one of three interceptions in the second full-team OTA while Carroll was at his side, the coach took off on a pursuit angle towards safety Chris Smith on his return.
Carroll said it was important to already amp up the competition between the offense and defense. He scored the first OTA as a victory for the offense.
The second, the only full-team practice available to media so far, was a clear win for the defense with a pair of Carroll’s handpicked defensive back free-agent signings, Jeremy Chinn and Lonnie Johnson, joining Smith in creating turnovers.
“Every day, (Carroll) talks about competition, and that’s real,” edge rusher Maxx Crosby said. “If you're a competitor, truly to the core, this is exactly where you want to be. …I love it, and that energy keeps me fueled at all times. Pete is constantly testing me. He’s testing other guys on the team. He just wants to see guys be the best versions of themselves.”
Las Vegas has been one of the least successful teams in the NFL over the last three years with a combined 18-33 record, but that mark could have been a couple wins better without some puzzling in-game coaching decisions.
Some hailed Carroll’s hiring as a way to rectify that with a proven veteran less likely to make such strategic blunders. There’s probably some truth to Carroll being an upgrade in that department, but that’s never where he’s found his biggest edge.
The Raiders are more likely to be sharper under Carroll simply as a result of how much precision and passion he demands on a daily basis.
“The game is about working hard enough so that you develop the skills that it takes, so that when it comes to game day, comes to whatever the situation that you're facing, you have what it takes to get it done,” Carroll said. “And you know that you do because you've established that confidence that comes through good habits.”
Bloodstains dotted the arms and sides of Carroll’s long-sleeve white shirt when he spoke to media immediately after the second OTA. It wasn’t clear if the blood belonged to him or was the result from brushing up against one of his players, but it didn’t seem to bother Carroll either way.
It’s just a symptom of the mentality Carroll is instilling with the Raiders, one the players have been eager to embrace.
“It feels more lively,” edge rusher Malcolm Koonce said. “There’s a whole bunch of new staff. I feel like Pete, he’s trying to keep us on our toes and change things around.”
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