Report detailing Raiders' chaos shows how nepotism is one reason offense tanked in 2025

The Las Vegas Raiders featured one of the more disappointing offenses in the NFL in 2025. Nepotism may have been one of the causes of the unit's problems. 

Shortly after the Raiders hired former head coach Pete Carroll in January 2025, his son, Brennan, joined his staff as a run game coordinator/offensive line coach. It immediately became apparent that he was a poor fit for Vegas. 

Report details how Raiders O-line crumbled under Brennan Carroll 

In a bombshell report published Tuesday, ESPN's Ryan McFadden and Kalyn Kahler revealed several tidbits about the Raiders' first season under minority owner Tom Brady. This included how Brennan Carroll flopped as an O-line coach. Neither Brady nor Brennan Carroll spoke with ESPN. 

An agent for a Raiders offensive lineman told Kahler and McFadden that the position group held private meetings without Brennan Carroll and other coaches to block better for quarterback Geno Smith and running back Ashton Jeanty. Players weren't impressed with the coach, who rushed them through drills and didn't make it clear what they were supposed to do in these drills. 

"It was that bad," the agent said. "They were meeting on their own and trying to figure it out together, which I never heard of in my history of working in the league." 

Raiders offensive tackles DJ Glaze and Charles Grant confirmed the O-line met with Jeanty and Smith at least twice a week since OTAs without the coaching staff, but they said it was to get on the same page.

Glaze, however, admitted there were times the unit didn't know who would start the Saturday before a Sunday game because the coaching staff wanted to see how players competed throughout the week and whether they would be healthy. That's another example of why many feel Brennan Carroll was at the root of Vegas' offensive issues. 

"The offensive line coach is the biggest issue with this team," an agent said in December. "Everybody knows, and nobody talks about it because it's Pete's son. Everyone talks about it behind the scenes, no one talks about it publicly."

"Just like anything, you know where issues are," a team source said. "Guys stay pretty professional. Some stuff is like the elephant in the room, but guys keep a poker face [and] keep on working." 

Keeping a poker face, however, is one key reason the Raiders kept losing this past season, like many who spin slot machines in Vegas casinos. 

The Raiders went 3-14 in 2025, ranking last in the league in points per game (14.2). The O-line's inability to give Smith time to throw and Jeanty room to run compounded Vegas' problems.

Smith, 35, took a career-high 55 sacks in 15 starts. 2025 No. 6 pick Jeanty, meanwhile, averaged a below-average 3.7 yards per carry (975 yards in 17 games). 

Brennan Carroll coached alongside his dad as an assistant OL coach for the Seattle Seahawks from 2015-19. He was then an offensive coordinator and OL coach for the Arizona Wildcats (2021-23) and Washington Huskies (2024-25). 

Despite his previous experience, the Raiders clearly shouldn't have hired him. His relationship with his father seemed to make players feel they couldn't discuss O-line issues, as Pete Carroll might have perceived it as unfair criticism of his son. 

The Raiders fired Pete Carroll on Monday. It's best Vegas' next HC doesn't include family members on his staff. The previous regime showed how it creates several problems.