The Las Vegas Raiders appear to be narrowing in on their next head coach, and Kansas City Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo is right in the thick of it according to veteran NFL insider Josina Anderson.
“Developing,” Anderson began on the evening of January 23. “Former [Seattle] Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll is growing more interest from the Raiders brass for their head coach vacancy, per league sources. Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo candidacy has also drawn interest from Las Vegas, as well. Two league sources, currently* believe Carroll is in the lead–but again this is still all up to the Raiders.”
“We’ll see what the Raiders decide to do as they work through their process, and IF* they’re ready to land on a selection,” she continued. “I’m just sharing the buzz I’m currently hearing.”
Finally, Anderson added a “side note” that “Carroll’s name was purposefully mentioned as a nugget on my timeline [on January 22], as I’m aware he’s been actively sharing his desires to high-level staff members of certain clubs—which is now out.”
In other words, it’s quite possible that Spagnuolo is considered to be a finalist for the Raiders’ head coach position. To be clear, Anderson never used that word, but it certainly seems like the Chiefs DC has made it to the final round of the process — even if Carroll is the current favorite.
Per Anderson’s final note, it also appears that Carroll is asking around about potential staff hires, should he get the job. There’s no word on if Spagnuolo is doing the same, but that should be considered highly unlikely as he’s currently prepping for the AFC Championship game.
Chiefs’ Steve Spagnuolo & Pete Carroll Have Similar Coaching Background
If Anderson is correct, and Carroll and Spagnuolo are two of the finalists for the Raiders job, it would make sense considering they’re similar candidates.
It goes without saying that Carroll’s track record as an NFL head coach is much better than Spagnuolo’s, but they’ve each held the title before. They’re also both older candidates that come from a defensive background, and they’ve each won the Super Bowl.
Of course, Carroll did so as a head coach, while Spagnuolo has only hoisted the Lombardi Trophy as a defensive coordinator.
Either way, you might say the Raiders have decided on the type of head coach they’d like to hire. Someone with a wealth of experience that comes from a championship culture, and someone that can figure out how to stop the three franchise quarterbacks of the AFC West — Patrick Mahomes, Justin Herbert and Bo Nix.
Although, this would be a major deviation from their pursuit of former Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson.
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