When the Las Vegas Raiders decided to hire former Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll as their head coach to start their new regime, they knew they were getting a program builder.
Carroll turned the Seahawks from somewhat of a laughing stock into a team that won a Super Bowl against the Denver Broncos, and went to another one but lost to the dynasty that was the New England Patriots, almost winning that one, too. So, we know what he can do in terms of taking a franchise that's in the dumps and making them a playoff team.
And, really, why he's been able to do it and do it so well is because of two things. The first one is culture. We know that his teams are all about culture. They drafted and signed guys who fit that culture of not only being good football players, but being good workers, hard workers, and good humans.
Secondly, Carroll is somewhat of a player's coach, where he is very hands-on. He establishes relationships like no other coach does, really. Carroll really cares about the players on and off the field. And, he is pretty hands-on when it comes to drills and practice. I'm sure by now you have all seen the videos of him doing things with the secondary.
That's not something that's normal for the coaches.
“I've never had a head coach really hands-on with the DBs, so it's different for me," safety Isaiah Pola-Mao said. "But I love it. And at the same time, Pete's legendary. Learning from him, he's seen it and he's done it, so he knows what it's supposed to look like. I'm just learning, listening, and trying to take it all in.”
When you have a secondary that's as young as this one is for the Raiders, they need that. Carroll has developed some of the best secondary players in NFL history. Look at guys like Kam Chancellor, Richard Sherman, and many others who have become All-Pro players because of him. And, to add to that, Carroll is doing all of that while being in his mid-70s. The guy is truly a legend, and the Raiders are hoping he turns this thing around, while also developing the secondary.
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