How One Offseason Decision Changed Everything for the Raiders

Earlier this offseason, the Las Vegas Raiders interviewed Ben Johnson in their quest for their next head coach. Cody Benjamin of CBS Sports analyzed how the Chicago Bears' decision to hire Johnson impacted the Raiders in several ways.

"If Mike McCarthy had landed with the Bears, prompting Ben Johnson to join the Raiders, it's very possible, if not probable, that Las Vegas would've escalated its pursuit of a quarterback upgrade," Benjamin said.

"What if, instead of dealing a mid-round pick to the Seattle Seahawks for old Carroll understudy Geno Smith, they pushed all their chips on the biggest name of the 2025 market?

"Stafford was permitted to speak with other teams about a potential contract before securing a revised deal with the Los Angeles Rams, and [Tom] Brady's Raiders were reportedly among the most interested suitors," Benjamin said.

"Now imagine if Johnson was part of the pitch; he was on staff with the [Detroit] Lions, alongside Stafford, from 2019-2020. In this scenario, it's not so crazy to envision Stafford rocking silver and black to close his storied gunslinging career."

Stafford joining the Raiders would have improved their quarterback situation but there is no telling how long it would have lasted, as Stafford appears to be on the back end of his career. Also, the Raiders appear to be fully behind veteran quarterback Geno Smith.

Following Organized Team Activities, Raiders Offensive Coordinator Chip Kelly explain why he is thrilled to have Smith as his quarterback. Although Stafford would have been a solid addition, the addition of Carroll, Kelly, and Smith should still be an upgrade over last season for Las Vegas.

"The beauty of Geno is that Geno has been in multiple systems now, and there's a lot of things Geno can do. I don't think you can just pigeonhole him. I think he runs better than people really give him credit for," Kelly said.

"I think he can beat you with his feet. He can keep plays alive with his feet. He's extremely accurate. He gets the ball out of his hand quickly. He can be a movement guy, but he can also be a drop back guy, and Pete [Carroll] and Greg Olson, our quarterback coach, had a great understanding, because they've coached him for such a long time. And what we saw in terms of Pete's evaluation, Oli's [Greg Olson] evaluation of him is what I've seen here. I think whatever we fit into schematically offensively, I think Geno can handle all that."

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