Pete Carroll has begun the search for his coaching staff, and to this point, there have been three names linked to Carroll and the Raiders for their defensive coordinator position.
“The Raiders interviewed defensive line coach Rob Leonard for their defensive coordinator vacancy on Monday, according to a team source,” The Athletic’s Vic Tafur and Tashan Reed reported on Monday. “Leonard has been with the Raiders since 2023 and has 14 years of coaching experience. He has previously coached with the Baltimore Ravens and Miami Dolphins. He has spent several years with Patrick Graham, the Raiders’ defensive coordinator from 2022 to 2024, and knows his system well.“
“Carroll also planned to talk to Graham about returning to the DC role, according to a league source. The Raiders have also requested an interview with Seahawks defensive backs coach Karl Scott for the defensive coordinator vacancy. Scott has been with Seattle since 2022, so he has two years of experience working under Carroll.”
As for the offensive coordinator vacancy in Las Vegas, a CBS report said another familiar face is in the running for that job.
According to CBS insider Johnathan Jones, Bo Hardegree is an “emerging” name on Carroll’s list of candidates to be the next offensive coordinator in Las Vegas.
“Many questions surround the Raiders and who Pete Carroll will hire as his offensive coordinator,” Jones reported on Sunday. “Early names emerging from Las Vegas include Titans QBs coach (and former interim Raiders OC) Bo Hardegree as well as Broncos senior personnel executive David Shaw, sources say. Shaw, the former Stanford head coach, has had three head-coach interviews the last two seasons and is interviewing for the Bears offensive coordinator position.”
Hardegree interviewed for the Raiders OC job last year but was passed over in favor of Kliff Kingsbury and then Luke Getsy.
Hardegree’s tenure as interim offensive coordinator in Las Vegas received mixed reviews in 2023, and if he’s a candidate to return to Las Vegas, it would be a little bit of a surprise if Scott Turner, who filled the interim OC role this year, doesn’t get a look.
Since the season’s ended, Turner has been linked to coordinator opportunities in the NFL and college ranks but nothing has materialized to this point.
A report in The Athletic last week identified former Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell as the front runner for the same position in Las Vegas.
“There’s going to be some guys that he’s worked with before, and I think Darrell Bevel is probably the hottest name for them in terms of having the most momentum at offensive coordinator,” Reed said on the Just Win podcast. “But they do have to conduct a full search at both OC and DC. Because of the Rooney Rule, you have to interview at least two diverse candidates for both of those spots.”
In a column last week, Reed called Bevell the “likeliest candidate” to get the Raiders offensive coordinator job.
“Miami Dolphins quarterbacks coach Darrell Bevell is the likeliest candidate to land the Raiders’ OC job, according to a league source,” Reed reported. “Bevell was the Seahawks’ OC from 2011 to 2017 and helped them win Super Bowl XLVIII. He has also been an OC with three other teams: the Minnesota Vikings (2006-2010), Detroit Lions (2019-2020) and Jacksonville Jaguars (2021). He has been with the Dolphins since 2022 and has helped the offense find success with quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.”
x: @raidersbeat
It’s hard to know how much credit to give Bevell for Tua considering Mike McDaniel is the offensive mastermind and play caller in Miami. That said, he did have success in Seattle.
Can’t say any of the names reported so far have been too inspiring. Hardegree would be a disappointing choice, IMO. Obviously when you’re looking for up and coming offensive minds, it’s hard for outsiders to really judge, but I wish they were going that route instead of retreads.
Would it hurt to give Chip Kelly a call?
No chip kelly please.