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Rich Cimini
multiple authors
Florham Park, NJ — Former NFL coach Pete Carroll, who developed a close relationship with geno smith During their six seasons together, he was a little surprised when he first heard that his former quarterback had been traded. New York Jets.
“I had to laugh a little bit because of the history and everything,” Carroll told ESPN on Wednesday in his first interview since being fired. las vegas raiders Postseason.
Carroll spoke enthusiastically about Smith, predicting he would bounce back from last season and surprise people in his second stint with the Jets, who acquired him via a late-round pick swap on Tuesday. Carroll took the blame for Smith’s struggles in Las Vegas, saying, “We should have coached him better.”
The former Super Bowl champion coach has kept a low profile since his poor season with the Raiders, who went 3-14, but he broke his silence because of his affinity for Smith.
“I love talking about G,” Carroll said. “I think I see him differently than a lot of people. I love him and appreciate him differently.”
Carroll, who trained Smith Seattle Seahawks From 2019 to 2023, traded for Smith in 2025 in hopes of recreating what they had in Seattle. It went sideways, as Smith led the league in interceptions (17) and sacks (55). It was an up-and-down season, as Carroll fired offensive coordinator Chip Kelly after 11 games.
“He’s a phenomenal quarterback, he really is,” Carroll said. “He had a great offseason and preseason with us, and he went out in the first game, had a great first game. It was all right. It was just the right time for us. Then we just faltered and faltered. We didn’t do very well in coaching.
He added, “We should have prepared him better for things that happened and it wouldn’t have happened.” “I take a lot of responsibility in that. We didn’t prepare him well in the offseason, even though he looked great and we thought we had everything ready. It was very, very disappointing for both of us.”
Smith passed for 362 yards in Week 1 win new England PatriotsBut his interceptions increased and the team continued its four-match losing streak.
“He had such a bad start and it wasn’t just because of him,” Carroll said. “It was the whole thing. We didn’t get things right in the beginning and he was behind the eight ball right from the start. Everyone wanted to blame him for it, and he took it and took it and took it, and then they caught him – an exchange or whatever. He didn’t get the benefit of our relationship.”
Carroll was referring to an incident late in the season in which Smith ignored Raiders fans as he left the field after a loss. Smith later apologized.
Carroll said he is confident Smith will be the same as he was in Seattle, where he threw for more than 4,200 yards in two of his first three seasons. But the Raiders’ pass protection was poor, forcing Smith to make bad decisions. Carroll said the offensive line was not good enough. (Ironically, the Jets agreed to a contract on Wednesday with one of the Raiders’ former linemen, guard dylan parham.)
“We were killed, we were killed,” Carroll said. “Our offensive line has murdered us the last few years. We need to upgrade more than that. It didn’t happen in the draft, and it didn’t happen in the offseason.
“We didn’t go for it in the offseason. We needed to buy a new line to at least give guys a chance to be more competitive. The only reason you get sacked so much is because you try to throw it too much. The whole thing didn’t work out right and that’s why you saw the changes and all that.”
The Jets, looking for a new starter, traded a 2026 sixth-round pick and a 2026 seventh-round pick for Smith — a deal that became official Wednesday at 4 p.m. The 35-year-old Smith admitted that he did not play well in Las Vegas. He did not give any excuse. The bright spot, he said, was Carroll.
“That guy is special — a Hall of Fame coach and Hall of Fame guy, all the way through,” Smith told Josina Anderson on the Exhibit News Network on Tuesday. “I wanted to win a Super Bowl for him because he means so much to me. It didn’t work out the way we planned.”
Carroll said he “fell in love” with Smith during his three seasons as Smith’s backup. Russell WilsonCiting his work ethic and competitiveness. Now Smith has returned to the team that drafted him in 2013. He started 29 games for the Jets in 2013 and 2014, but he lost his job to Ryan Fitzpatrick due to a broken jaw suffered in a locker room brawl with a teammate.
“If he finds out [New York] There was a good place for him and he wanted to do it, and he was part of the decision, so I couldn’t be more supportive of him,” Carroll said. “If he saw the logic and felt the support and the opportunity, I couldn’t be more in favor of it. I love that guy and want the best for him. He deserves it. “He’s worked really hard to get where he is.”
