Raiders HC Pete Carroll addresses talk of him being on hot seat

The Las Vegas Raiders have the worst record in football with just one game remaining in Pete Carroll's first season with the team. 

Naturally, that has led to questions about whether the head coach might not get another shot in 2026. Carroll addressed that talk following Sunday's game. The Raiders fell to 2-14 with their 34-10 loss to the New York Giants in Week 17. 

Their offseason moves, the most notable of which was hiring Carroll, have not panned out. Following Sunday's loss, Carroll was asked if he feels he still has the support of Las Vegas' front office. The 74-year-old coach stopped short of saying he has been given any assurances about his job status.

"I do. From all the guys I’ve talked to, I do feel like I have their support," Carroll said, via Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk. "What does that mean? I don’t know, but our conversations have been really good."

Raiders are in line for No. 1 overall pick

By losing to the Giants, the Raiders have positioned themselves to land the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. They still have one game remaining against the Patrick Mahomes-less Kansas City Chiefs, but they have a strong chance of finishing with the worst record in the league this season.

The Raiders hired Carroll in January 2025. Carroll then hired Chip Kelly as his offensive coordinator a short while later. A promising offseason continued when Las Vegas traded for Geno Smith in March. Kelly was fired in November amid the Raiders' current losing streak, which now stands at 10 games.

Smith has 3,025 yards, 19 touchdowns and an NFL-worst 17 interceptions in 15 games this season. Though he signed a two-year, $75M extension with the Raiders after the team acquired him in a trade with the Seattle Seahawks, Smith is also facing an uncertain future in Las Vegas.

Pete Carroll may not coach in NFL in 2026

If the Raiders decide to fire Carroll, there is a good chance the Super Bowl champion coach will not be on an NFL sideline in 2026. Many were surprised when the Seahawks pushed Carroll out after the 2023 season, and he took a year off before landing with the Raiders. He was supposed to bring stability to Las Vegas, but the results have been a massive disappointment.

Carroll had a successful run as the head coach in Seattle from 2010-23. He finished with a regular-season record of 137-89-1 and went 10-9 in the playoffs, reaching the Super Bowl twice and winning a championship in 2013. The Raiders were hoping to capture some of that magic, but the Carroll era in Las Vegas is not off to a strong start. It could wind up being a very brief one, too.