The Las Vegas Raiders are reportedly hiring former Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll to be their next head coach. The Raiders very obviously don’t have their quarterback situation figured out, and the most successful quarterback of Carroll’s NFL career happens to be an unrestricted free agent in March. Could the Pittsburgh Steelers have some competition for Russell Wilson’s services if they decide they want him back?
According to The Athletic’s Jeff Howe on X, Wilson has “mended fences” with Carroll and there is expected to be some interest there.
“With Pete Carroll taking over the Raiders, one name I’ve heard to watch at QB: Russell Wilson,” Howe wrote. “They’ve mended fences, per source, and Wilson could be a stopgap while the Raiders develop a long-term answer.”
The Raiders have the No. 6 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, and with a weaker quarterback class, it wouldn’t be impossible for them to land one of the top two or three options in that spot. If they are unable to find their next quarterback early in the draft, I can’t imagine they would run it back with Gardner Minshew II and Aidan O’Connell after last year’s results.
That is where Wilson could come into play as a bridge to their future. The connection is obvious. He and Carroll went 104-53-1 in 10 regular seasons together. They also went 9-7 in the playoffs, including a Super Bowl championship and one other appearance in the big game. But how wise would it be for a reunion in a different city with less infrastructure to win now? And how big of a role did Carroll have in Seattle trading Wilson following the 2021 season to the Denver Broncos?
“What I continue to say: I had no intention, at all, of making a move while guys were under contract. And we were pleased with what was going on,” Carroll told Gregg Bell of The News Tribune in 2022 following the trade.
Some within the Seahawks’ organization were pushing for the trade while Carroll was initially against it. It was Wilson who started to sour on his relationship with the team. The firing of OC Brian Schottenheimer was not a popular move with the quarterback after he had some of the best seasons of his career. Wilson was under contract through 2023, and he reportedly informed the Seahawks that he would not re-sign after that point. That left them to start considering other options.
According to Carroll, the Seahawks were prepared to see it through with Wilson until the end of his career. Carroll’s old-school mentality of running the football first was part of the reason Wilson wanted out. It was the “Let Russ Cook” era, after all.
There don’t seem to be any lingering hard feelings between the two. Wilson said on The Pat McAfee Show earlier this week that a bunch of former players got together to celebrate Carroll after his time with the Seahawks came to a close. Wilson had plenty of praise for his former coach.
If anything, Wilson might be the one who wouldn’t want to run it back with Carroll. He is still that same coach who likes to run the ball. The ironic thing is, after a brief stint with the Broncos, Wilson ended up quarterbacking one of the most conservative, run-first offenses in the league under Mike Tomlin and Arthur Smith.
I have no clue if the Raiders would be interested, or if that interest would be reciprocated from Wilson. What I do know is that Wilson wants to continue his career as a starter. The Steelers may or may not move on from him. The connection is obvious with Carroll, and the Raiders need a bridge quarterback.
For what it’s worth, Wilson was interested in playing for the Raiders while on his free agency tour last year, according to The Athletic’s Dianna Russini.
The possibility of another team offering Wilson money could also drive the price up for the Steelers, making it an easier decision to move on to Justin Fields. This could add an interesting wrench into the already complicated QB situation in Pittsburgh.
