Fair or not, the perception exists that Las Vegas Raiders minority owner Tom Brady wanted to hire former Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson to be the Raiders’ next head coach. Johnson instead chose to accept the Chicago Bears’ job, and the Raiders ultimately hired former Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll.
For a piece published Monday, NFL insider Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated touched upon Brady’s involvement in the selection of a head coach who may only be on the job for a handful of years.
“One thing that a few connected people said to me early in the process was not to underestimate Brady’s own experiences in the search — and how the respect he had for Carroll had always been apparent,” Breer explained. “In Carroll, he and the Raiders saw someone who could energize the building and give the team an identity.”
The Raiders haven’t won a postseason game since January 2003 and last made a playoff appearance in January 2022. Such a lack of success at the highest level is essentially foreign to Brady, so it makes sense he wanted to bring in somebody with a pair of Super Bowl appearances and one championship on his head-coaching resume.
“Carroll is 73, so this isn’t a forever hire for the Raiders,” Breer continued. “But one interesting nugget I was able to pick up on that front should ease the concerns a bit: In preparing to try to land a coaching job over the past year, Carroll talked a lot about finding an assistant or two to put on his staff whom he felt could succeed him…I don’t know who those guys will be, but it does seem like that’ll be part of his plan.”
Interestingly, the two head coaches who helped Brady earn his seven career Super Bowl rings had different experiences with succession plans.
Bill Belichick allegedly did Jerod Mayo few favors in their final season together regarding Belichick getting Mayo ready to serve as head coach of the New England Patriots, and Mayo became a one-and-done coach earlier this month.
Meanwhile, Bruce Arians surprisingly stepped down as head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in late March 2022 in part so that Tampa Bay could promote then-defensive coordinator Todd Bowles. The Buccaneers have since claimed three straight NFC South division titles under Bowles.
If nothing else, it certainly seems like previous claims about the Raiders being Brady’s “show now“
were at least somewhat accurate. As much as Carroll may help improve the Raiders’ culture, setting a young coach up to eventually follow in his footsteps could result in the franchise becoming all that Brady envisions.
