The Las Vegas Raiders named former Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll as their new head coach last week. Carroll has immediately gone to work on forming his staff, identifying Seahawks assistant Karl Scott as a candidate for his defensive coordinator vacancy. The biggest item on Vegas’ offseason wish list is to find a new starting quarterback.
The Raiders received lackluster QB play from Aidan O’Connell and Gardner Minshew throughout 2024. Yet somehow, the Raiders won too many games to earn a top-five selection in the 2025 NFL Draft. That complicates their chances of drafting one of the top quarterback prospects, Cam Ward or Shedeur Sanders.
Carroll and the Raiders may be forced to get creative when searching for upgrades at quarterback. That could include acquiring a veteran via trade. Seahawks starting quarterback Geno Smith is already being floated as a potential option.
If the Seahawks and Geno Smith can’t agree on an extension early this offseason, Las Vegas would seem to be logical trade option now that Carroll is there. The Raiders need a QB and Carroll has an affinity for Smith, once calling him one of his all-time favorite players.
— Brady Henderson (@BradyHenderson) January 24, 2025
Smith posted this cryptic message on social media shortly after Carroll was named head coach of the Raiders. Smith spent five seasons (2019-23) alongside Carroll in Seattle. It was Carroll that offered Smith an opportunity to revive his career, naming him the starting quarterback in 2022 en route to his first Pro Bowl appearance and Comeback Player of the Year honors.
Smith possesses just one remaining season on a previously signed three-year extension with the Seahawks. That leaves his future in Seattle undefined. Smith has previously approached general manager John Schneider about a contract extension, but nothing came to fruition. If discussions get complicated this offseason, it’s well within the realm of possibility that Carroll and the Raiders will be paying close attention.
