"Knows how to build a team and win with a rookie QB": RGIII predicts big things following Pete Carroll's Raiders move

The Las Vegas Raiders have hired Pete Carroll as their new head coach, a move that has the ringing endorsement of former quarterback Robert Griffin III. The Raiders aim to rebound from a disappointing 2024 season, finishing with a 4-13 record and last place in the AFC West.

The Raiders are expected to select a quarterback in the first round of the NFL Draft, and Griffin believes Carroll is well-suited to develop that prospect.

Carroll returns to coaching after a year away from the sidelines following his departure from the Seattle Seahawks. He previously led Seattle to two Super Bowl appearances and one championship during his 14-season tenure.

On Friday, Griffin tweeted:

“Love the Pere Carroll hiring. Knows how to win in a tough division, having been in the NFC West. Knows how to build a team and win with a rookie (quarterback). Proven winner.”

The Raiders will be on the clock with the sixth overall pick on Apr. 24 in Green Bay.

Pete Carroll is a proven winner

Pete Carroll has been successful everywhere he has gone, whether at the collegiate level or in the NFL.

While his brief stint as head coach of the New York Jets was rough, finishing 6-10 in 1994, he guided the New England Patriots to two playoff appearances in three seasons. He didn't post a losing record over that span.

After the Pats axed him in 1999, Carroll was named head coach of the USC Trojans in Dec. 2000. He had eight winning seasons with the program while capturing five Rose Bowl titles and a national championship.

Carroll returned to the NFL in 2010 as head coach of the Seattle Seahawks, a post he’d maintain until 2024. He instantly turned the franchise around, making the playoffs in his first season at the helm, and won the Super Bowl XLVIII.

In the highly competitive NFC West, the Seahawks won the division five times under Carroll and only missed the playoffs on four occasions.

Pete Carroll knows how to develop rookie quarterback

NFL: Seattle Seahawks at Arizona Cardinals - Source: Imagn

Pete Carroll has built a reputation for developing young quarterbacks throughout his lengthy coaching career.

Carson Palmer, Matt Leinart and Mark Sanchez were all QBs during Carroll’s time at USC. Palmer and Leinart won Heisman trophies, and Sanchez captured the Rose Bowl.

In Seattle, Carroll groomed Russell Wilson into an elite NFL pivot, with the Seahawks boasting an 11-5 record during his rookie season in 2012. Wilson was a Super Bowl-winning quarterback a year later, making nine Pro Bowls under Carroll’s tutelage.

When the club moved on from Wilson, Carroll helped mold Geno Smith into a solid QB, as Seattle had winning records when the two were together in 2022 and 2023.

Carroll takes over a team that has suffered three consecutive losing seasons in the AFC West since making the playoffs in 2021-22.