The Raiders are off to a 1-4 start, and it’s starting to feel like another season is going to be down the drain by November.
By now, Raider fans are all too familiar with the process, and one of the first signs of a season on the brink of something terrible is when respectable coaches begin sounding delusional in conversations with the media.
On Monday, head coach Pete Carroll was asked about the performance of Geno Smith, and he sounded like a head coach who watched a different game.
“G was solid,” Carroll said of his veteran quarterback.
“The play when the guys jumps in the neutral zone, he’s got a change to throw the ball in the endzone, we’ve got a penalty situation. He had a guy open; he made what I think would have been a great throw. The ball got tipped up and turns into a game-changing interception. It’s unfortunate. Sometimes that happens and his response is he sees the guy in the neutral zone, so he knows he has the freedom to make the play… he had the right read and he was throwing to the right guy,” Carroll continued.
“G’s just got to keep doing it. He got to stay with it. We’ve got to continue to build around him, get the running game rolling, got to get our guys coming through on their plays, and he’s got to do his part also. The pick that he threw that was legit, we got a little challenge in the coverage right there and the response to the guy coming off the edge and didn’t get what we needed done there.”
What Carroll didn’t say is that Smith often held the ball too long when he had protection and threw another ball directly to a Colts’ defender, but the defensive back dropped an easy interception.
Smith looked confused and unsure of himself against the Colts, which shouldn’t come as a surprise considering he leads the NFL in interceptions with nine.
The issues with the Raiders’ offense go well beyond Smith, but to talk like he had a solid game on Sunday is disrespectful to the talent he possesses.
There’s no doubt Smith is a better quarterback than what he has shown but pretending he’s doing a good job isn’t something anyone wants to hear right now. It might not even be something the locker room wants to hear.
And as Raider fans know all too well… when coaches start sounding crazy at the microphone, it’s usually not a sign of good things to come.
x: @raidersbeat
Pete is probably just trying to convey his support for HIS QB to the public, but privately, hopefully, he’s letting Smith know that his play is not up to par and needs improvement. That said, maybe Pete should have stayed retired as this job has become too much for him. We probably need a young upstart coach that will bring energy and new ideas?’ The while team culture needs to change.
I think he could still coach a team that had a strong roster in place, but maybe needed a culture guy… I heard someone mention Dallas as a place he could have helped.
But a 4-13 team with a bad roster? Already looking like it was a terrible fit.
I believe by not being able to determine the need to upgrade the roster, especially the OL, Pete basically lost the season before it even started! Not a good sign when a coach can’t spot the deficiencies in his team to therefore improve it. So basically Pete isn’t a good judge of a player’s talent, he needs a strong GM to build the team for him?
Carroll is Turning (or already is) into Biden…. Can stand at the Podium, usually without falling (only sometimes) but obviously delutional in what he says… Where is Kamala??? LoL
Sounds more like the current commander in chief. Delusional.
Sure does. Have no idea why that original comment was relevant, but some guys are so desperate to inject their personal politics into strange places, you wonder if they have anyone to talk to at home, or maybe they’ve just burned all those bridges.
Geno Smith sucks no ifs, ans or
Butts about it
Maybe Pete will resign to join ICE.
so chip kelley is the problem – not ‘G’
The whole “sounds like he’s part of another organization” is deeply ingrained in Raiders culture, from ownership to team media, even fans. There is not nearly enough recognition of just how badly this team has fallen off over the past 2 and a half decades.
We suck ! We have sucked for years and we are going to continue to suck until Mark Davis does Raider Nation a favor and sells the team to someone who knows something about the game. Fucken horrible 😤
Rob…I agree with you and I have said the same thing for years! The RAIDERS will NEVER be a good football team until mark davis is gone!
Pete Carroll must have a early onset of alzheimer’s if thinks Geno Smith played Solid time for him to go back into retirement this time take your qb Geno Smith with U..
Where is Antonio Pierce at least he had them playing hard for him and he had the locker room all he needed was a quarterback when you let him go for the Carol circus what a joke
Was he criticizing the officials while attempting to rewrite one of the terrible decisions by His QB? I’ve re-watched that play and the DL guy did move before the ball was snapped but almost stood up rather going into the neutral zone. It was definitely close but it didn’t change the fact that the pass got tipped and picked. Pete needs to quit making excuses and either start coaching or retire. It was a terrible decision to bring in Pete when a rebuild was needed. Picking a RB at 6 was not needed and Pete, Spytek, and Tommy need to be held accountable. The best pick at that point would be to trade back and get more top 40 picks.