Breaking: Russell Wilson’s Raiders Link Intensifies, Pete Carroll’s Involvement Raises Controversy

The Athletic’s Jeff Howe raised some eyebrows when he reported last week that current Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson “could be a stopgap” option for the Las Vegas Raiders regarding the 2025 season in part because the pending free agent and new Raiders head coach Pete Carroll have “mended fences.”

ESPN NFL insider Jeremy Fowler expanded on that topic in a piece published Wednesday.

“Two ex-Carroll assistants believe they can coexist, with one taking it as far as predicting that Wilson will sign [with the Raiders], adding that the two rekindled their relationship a little over a year ago after a rocky ending in Seattle,” Fowler explained. 

Carroll and Wilson led the Seattle Seahawks to a pair of Super Bowl appearances and one title from 2012-21 until Wilson reportedly tried to get Carroll and Seattle general manager John Schneider fired in February 2022. The Seahawks ultimately shipped Wilson to the Denver Broncos in March of that year, and Seattle seemingly pushed Carroll into an advisor role last January.

Most recently, Wilson helped the Steelers go from 4-2 to 10-3 this season before he and Pittsburgh endured a five-game losing streak that included the club suffering a wild-card playoff defeat at the Baltimore Ravens. Steelers owner and president Art Rooney II said earlier this week his “preference” would be to re-sign either Wilson or backup Justin Fields at some point before or after the new league year opens on March 12.

It appears Rooney may have to work something out with Wilson sooner rather than later to convince the 36-year-old to not make a move to Vegas.

“I think both would be open to it,” another ex-Carroll coach told Fowler about a potential reunion between the Seahawks icons in Vegas.

The Raiders desperately need an upgrade at quarterback for even one year, and Wilson presumably would enter springtime workouts as Vegas’ starter considering who was on the club’s roster when Week 18 concluded.

With that said, The Athletic’s Nick Baumgardner and Scott Dochterman predicted in a mock draft published on Tuesday that the Raiders could get Colorado signal-caller Shedeur Sanders with the sixth overall pick of the 2025 draft.

It’s unclear how Wilson would react if he was asked to compete with a big-name prospect such as Sanders for the Raiders’ starting job this coming summer.