Former Raiders OC Chip Kelly Mentions Only 1 Person by Name in Statement Following His Firing

The Raiders parted ways with Chip Kelly and his $6 million salary on Sunday evening, and it will be interesting to see what the offense looks like going forward.

Based on Pete Carroll’s comments since Kelly was fired, Carroll mostly stayed out of the way when it came to offensive game planning and play calling, but that probably won’t be the case going forward.

Carroll was critical of Kelly’s play calling on a few occasions in the first half of the season, and while their relationship didn’t seem to be problematic, the two definitely don’t operate by the same offensive philosophy.

Kelly hasn’t spoken since being fired, but he did share a message with FOX Sports insider Jay Glazer, and it was interesting who he chose to mention by name in his statement.

“I am grateful for the opportunity with the Raiders, bottom line in this league you have to win,” Kelly told Glazer, who posted his message on X. “I really loved those players, I’m a huge, HUGE Geno Smith fan, that was one of the best parts of this experience for me, working with Geno and those guys every day. But hey, we gotta win. I get it.”

It was a gracious message from Kelly, and what stood out was the fact that he only mentions Geno Smith by name.

Many believed it was Carroll that was behind the team’s stubborn approach with Smith, but it sounds like Kelly might have been one of Smith’s strongest supporters in the building.

For his part, Smith had plenty of opportunities to point the finger at his offensive coordinator this season but never directed blame at the coaching staff.

With Kelly out of the picture, it will be interesting to see if Carroll and Olson have the same level of patience with Smith.

Carroll said in the offseason that Smith was the quarterback he wanted from the day he was hired by the Raiders, but if Geno’s play doesn’t improve, Carroll might need to make a change at quarterback in an effort to save his own job.

ESPN’s Adam Schefter was asked if the Raiders might consider moving on from Carroll after the season, and Schefter believes all options are on the table for the decision makers in Las Vegas.

“Pete Carroll never fired an assistance coach in season in his entire time in Seattle. Now they fire two different coordinators here in about two plus weeks. They fired their special teams coach and now they fired Chip Kelly,” Schefter said on the Pat McAfee Show on Monday.

“I think it’s clear, nobody seems to be safe right now out there on the coaching staff. I think everything is up in the air. I think the season has not gone in the way that a lot of people would have hoped. It’s been disappointing in a lot of different ways. You lose the Browns at home like that [and] give up 10 sacks, everything is going to be called into question.”

x: @raidersbeat