HENDERSON, Nev.—The Las Vegas Raiders moved indoors today, and the level of competition, despite escaping the excruciating heat, didn’t cool down.
Our latest episode of the Las Vegas Raiders Insider Podcast provides an in-depth look at today's practice and the current Silver and Black depth chart.
Pete Carroll is putting on a master’s level course in leadership since taking over the Silver and Black. Along with GM John Spytek, their masterful manipulation of the roster has the Raiders on the verge of the 2025 season considerably more talented.
Pete Carroll answered several questions after practice, and below we have a partial transcript for you.
Las Vegas Raiders Pete Carroll
Las Vegas Raiders Pete Carroll / Darrell Craig Harris, On SI
Head Coach Pete Carroll
Q: Speaking on the competition and making decisions, how quickly do you feel like you need to figure out who the starting five is going to be on that offensive line? Carroll: "No, we have a long time. We got a month before we start playing real games, and maybe we don't figure it out by the start of the season and we're rotating then. It just needs to declare when it declares, but it's good for all of us. It's good for those guys to be battling and looking around and saying, 'Somebody's going to take my spot if I don't play well on every play that I get.' That's the mentality we're looking for."
Q: Are you seeing what you wanted to see from Jackson Powers-Johnson? Carroll: "Yeah, he's definitely a physical football player, and at the guard spot, playing next to Jordan [Meredith], it showed up. It seemed to be a bit of a factor. We need consistency. We need those guys working together. Jordan's coming a long way at the center spot, but he played a really solid game right out of the chute. So we played him a lot, and played almost to half time, and that was to just give him enough reps so that we could have stuff on film that we can work from. Same with JPJ [Jackson Powers Johnson]."
Q: At 73, you still call this your first day of school. What are you still learning this season? Carroll: "It's almost a moment to moment process of trying to figure out a better way to communicate, a better way to do something better, how to communicate with the coaches so they can reach their players, learning the coaches still, learning the players still, that's just an ongoing process, and that's why all of the competitive situations we put them in, I think it gives us more opportunity to learn who they are, and that's so eventually we can embrace who they are and help them be the best they can possibly be. Hey, by the way, this was a great showing by our fans today. It was really fun to see them out. There was over a couple thousand people here today, and you can feel it and the players could feel it. They were excited to be playing for them, and it was great to see. Appreciate that."
Q: How does that off the field chemistry translate to on the field? Carroll: "Everything counts. Everything is a competition in my mind. It's trying to do something as well as you can possibly do it. Being a good teammate, being connected, communicating with your teammates, communicating with your coaches. All of those are decisions that we can make, and we can act on them. And to me, it's all connected. So rule number one in the program is always protect the team, and that's about your conscience, and that your conscience -- it takes into account everybody that you're dealing with. So I'm looking for all of those kinds of illustrations we can find."
Q: Is Alex Cappa dealing with anything significant? We haven't seen him practice. Carroll: "He's got a rib something. It's a little crack, or something like that that we're just making sure that he gets back. It's a pretty subtle injury, but it does take a little while. It's hard to even take breath at times. So he's coming back, and he feels pretty good about it. It's not a long term deal at all."
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