When the Las Vegas Raiders hired Pete Carroll as the team’s new head coach, it was unclear whether he would completely clean house in terms of the staff. But Carroll would retain defensive coordinator Patrick Graham, who has been with the team since 2022.
While the stats may not show it, Graham has done some good work with the Raiders defense. Despite dealing with a ton of injuries, including to star defensive end Maxx Crosby, the Raiders still ranked 15th in the NFL in yards allowed and held four of their last six opponents under 20 points.
Now Graham is working with Carroll for the first time, and the defensive coordinator is enjoying the experience so far. Graham spoke on Carroll, saying that the energy and knowledge he brings are great and that he couldn’t be happier, via Austin C. Boyd of Athlon Sports:
“The thing with the NFL is that every season is a season of change, so we get accustomed to it; each week is a week of change,” Graham told reporters on Wednesday. “I would say, we’re all used to something like that, to a certain degree. Working with Pete’s been great. The energy, the football knowledge, learning from there and just having somebody to be able to talk about how situational football, talk about defensive philosophy has been great for me. … I couldn’t be happier with the situation. It’s been great.”
It’s important for the entire coaching staff to be on one accord, but that isn’t easy, especially when working with someone for the first time. Coaches have different styles and philosophies that could clash, but that doesn’t seem to be the case between Graham and Carroll.
The goal for everyone is to push this Raiders squad out of the cellar and into playoff contention, and the coaches seem locked in on that goal. Things are moving positively for the Raiders right now, and if this team can keep this energy once training camp comes around and the season begins, they could very well surprise some people.
Maxx Crosby loves the energy Pete Carroll is bringing to the Raiders
Head coach Pete Carroll is already leaving a positive impression on many within the Raiders organization so far, and that includes star defensive end Maxx Crosby.
Crosby said that he loves the energy Carroll is bringing to the team and that the coach is being himself each and every day. Crosby added that Carroll truly wants to bring out the best versions of every player on the roster.
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