Reasons to Believe in the Raiders

"Pete Carroll had just one losing season in his last 12 with the [Seattle] Seahawks, going 7-10 in 2021 despite a +29 point differential. He's a great asset to have in matchups with the other top-tier coaches that reside in the AFC West, and he should be a great asset in a locker room that experienced a lot of turnover this offseason. The offense has majorly upgraded its talent level with Geno Smith and Ashton Jeanty joining Brock Bowers and Jakobi Meyers at the key positions, and the Raiders have solid pieces on the offensive line as well," White said.

"While the defense finished 25th in scoring last year, Patrick Graham led the ninth-best scoring defense in the league the previous year despite similar questions about the talent around Maxx Crosby. Elandon Roberts is coming off perhaps his best season in 2024 and should help the team's rush defense up the middle, while Crosby himself could give the team a boost if he plays all 17 games as usual rather than missing a handful of games as he did last year."

Following the completion of minicamp, Carroll noted how well he believes the team is coming along, especially the rookies.

"You know, the young guys have done really well, the guys that we chose in a draft have all made a mark at some point and show that they deserve to being here. It looks like a really good class all the way through both offensive linemen, both defensive linemen, they participated and rolled in with the twos for the most part. Those guys, they held their own," Carroll said.

"Ashton [Jeanty] had an excellent camp, but Dont'e [Thornton Jr.] and Jack [Bech], they did their stuff. You know, it's a good looking group, and the idea is to force those guys to play early and make them have to play and to do that well, you have to ask them to do things they're good at. If you just ask them to try to do everything that a veteran knows they're going to falter and they're not going to be able to show themselves.

"But if you do it in a progressive manner that gives them a chance to show, then by the time we get to mid-season, those guys can be regulars for us. And so, this is not a new process. This is the way I've done it with rookies and freshmen in the whole thing for a long time. And it just depends on how well you orchestrate what you ask them to do, and if they can find success, and then their confidence builds, and then before you know it, you have got a regular, and that just helps her depth and helps us stay competitive."

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