‘I think we can do better’: Carroll explains offensive coordinator change

When the Raiders lured offensive coordinator Chip Kelly away from Ohio State by making him the highest-paid assistant coach in the NFL, they knew it would come with some provisions.

It was understood Kelly would essentially have carte blanche to run the offense as he saw fit. That’s part of the deal when you give an assistant a $6 million a year contract to leave one of the best programs in college football coming off a national championship season.

Even a respected coach like Pete Carroll, who has won a Super Bowl and a college national championship, knew he needed to give Kelly close to free rein.

“I gave Chip a lot of leeway because he’s got an extraordinary background and history,” Carroll said. “And he had such a phenomenal season coming out of Ohio State last year that we wanted to give him his due and all that.”

Ultimately, the power Carroll gave to Kelly led to the latter’s dismissal Sunday. The Raiders also fired senior offensive assistant Bob Bicknell. Quarterbacks coach Greg Olson was named the Raiders’ interim offensive coordinator Monday.

As the team’s offense continued to struggle, Carroll wanted to run the ball more and protect quarterback Geno Smith better. But he and Kelly couldn’t find common ground on how to turn things around.

“It’s trying to get everybody connected with, really, the approach and the philosophy that I’ve stood for for a long time,” Carroll said. “We gave our guys a lot of leeway because of the respect we have for the coaches, but it just hasn’t quite gotten right and I think we can do better.”

Carroll may have had more understanding if the Raiders (2-9) were winning games or moving the ball well. But the team has done neither this season.

The Raiders are 30th in yards per game (268.9) and tied for last in points per game (15).

The team failed to score more than 10 points for the fifth time in 11 games in its 24-10 loss to the Browns on Sunday at Allegiant Stadium. The Raiders have also failed to crack 100 rushing yards in their last seven games and have given up 18 sacks in their last three.

“Chip’s a guy that I’ve had a lot of respect for from afar,” defensive end Maxx Crosby said on the “Let’s Go!” podcast. “The offense has been struggling and felt like, you know, we needed to make a change. So that’s above my pay grade. But at the end of the day, I wish the best for Chip and I know he’ll be back doing his thing soon.”

The team’s struggles in the running game were particularly frustrating for Carroll. The Raiders rank 31st in rushing yards per game (79.5) despite using the No. 6 overall pick in April’s draft on running back Ashton Jeanty.

“We need to run the ball better and we need to have the running game available to us,” said Carroll, who fired special teams coordinator Tom McMahon earlier this month.

Moving forward

Olson, 62, is in his third stint as the Raiders offensive coordinator after holding the title from 2013-2014 and 2018-21.

He has also been the offensive coordinator for the Lions, Rams, Buccaneers and Jaguars.

Olson, unlike Kelly, has a history with Carroll. He was the Seahawks quarterbacks coach in 2023 when Carroll and Smith were in Seattle.

“He knows me inside and out and I think it’s a really fortunate opportunity that we have a guy that has that much background to step into this role,” Carroll said.

Expect the Raiders to be more diligent moving forward in respecting Carroll’s desire to use the run game to set up the pass game.

“I’ve been doing it this way for a lot of years and it’s a winning formula if you play good defense and you kick the ball well,” Carroll said. “And so, we’re trying to get that, and we just have not captured it. And so, this is what this move is about.”

Contact Vincent Bonsignore at vbonsignore@reviewjournal. com. Follow @VinnyBonsignore on X