NFL insider: Russell Wilson is ‘name to watch’ for Las Vegas Raiders after hiring Pete Carroll

The Las Vegas Raiders finally have a head coach in place, reaching an agreement Friday with Pete Carroll on a three-year deal with a fourth-year team option. Top of the list for Carroll and co. is finding a quarterback for the 2025 season and wouldn’t you know it, Russell Wilson is an unrestricted free agent.

Carroll and Wilson have quite the history together during their time together with the Seattle Seahawks and according to Jeff Howe of The Athletic, Wilson is “one name I’ve heard to watch” for Las Vegas.

“They’ve mended fences, per source, and Wilson could be a stopgap while the Raiders develop a long-term answer,” Howe wrote on X.

Wilson, 36, was under center for the majority of Carroll’s 14-year tenure with the Seahawks. The two were a winning partnership, going 104-53-1 in 10 seasons together. Seattle won a Super Bowl in 2013 and appeared in another the following year.

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Wilson, however, was traded to the Denver Broncos in a blockbuster deal during the 2022 offseason. The Athletic reported in February 2023 that Wilson requested the team fire Carroll and general manager John Schneider prior to the trade. Wilson later denied the report in a tweet, saying “I never wanted [Carroll or Schneider] fired.”

“I love Pete and he was a father figure to me and John believed in me and drafted me as well,” Wilson wrote. “I never wanted them fired. All any of us wanted was to win. l’ll always have respect for them and love for Seattle.”

Whatever issues — if any — that existed between the two appear to now be water under the bridge, as Howe noted. And with Las Vegas owning the No. 6 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, effectively taking them out of the Shedeur Sanders and Cam Ward sweepstakes, it would make sense to go with a veteran such as Wilson who has familiarity with Carroll.

Wilson is coming off his first season with the Pittsburgh Steelers following his release from the Broncos. Head coach Mike Tomlin named Wilson the starter over Justin Fields coming out of training camp and the preseason, but a calf injury forced him to miss the first six games of the season. Fields led Pittsburgh to a 4-2 record before making way for Wilson. The Steelers won six of Wilson’s first seven starts. At one point, Pittsburgh carried a 10-3 record and occupied first place in a competitive AFC North.

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A four-game losing streak to end the regular season meant that Pittsburgh would have to play on the road as a Wild Card against the Baltimore Ravens, who captured the division crown for the second consecutive season. Pittsburgh dropped their sixth consecutive playoff game dating back to 2016 under Tomlin. Wilson finished his 13th season in the NFL throwing for 2,482 yards, 16 touchdowns and five interceptions on 63.7% passing.

Speaking on “The Pat McAfee Show,” Wilson called Pittsburgh a “special place,” and said he would like to play there “for a lot longer.” Wilson added he’s had preliminary discussions with the organization about potentially returning next season.

“Going into Pittsburgh was a special place for me,” Wilson said Wednesday. “I love it, hopefully I get to play there for a lot longer. It’s a special place because of the guys in the locker room, the traditions, and the people, and the winning, and all of that. Plus, you’ve got Mike Tomlin, who’s arguably the best coach of all time. One of the top ones, just because of who he is and how he motivates us. Even through the storm, I think we battled and a lot of that was because of coach Tomlin and who he is and how he makes us prepare.”