Tom McMahon simply had to go.
Special teams used to be a traditional strength of the Silver & Black — immune from suffering that ailed the offense and defense. But McMahon’s unit wilted under the primetime
lights with another blocked punt and a missed field goal.
Good on Las Vegas Raiders head coach Pete Carroll for sacking the special teams coordinator after stinker another stinker of a performance.
“Earlier today, we made the tough decision to relieve Tom McMahon of his duties as special teams coordinator,” Carroll said in a statement posted on the Raiders official website Friday. “I have a great amount of respect for Tom and the work that he has done in this league, but we have decided to move in a different direction. Derius Swinton II will assume special teams coordinator duties on an interim basis and we are excited to attack the second half of this season with outstanding intent and purpose. We are grateful for Tom and his work here with the Raiders and wish him nothing but the best moving forward.”
McMahon arrived as special teams boss by former Raiders head man Josh McDaniels back in 2022 and inherited a kicking battery of kicker Daniel Carlson (a 2021 All Pro second-team selection) and punter AJ Cole III (a 2021 All Pro first-team selection and pro bowler). He’s a holdover of both McDaniels and then Antonio Pierce who succeeded the former. And Carroll decided to keep McMahon in place. The results of that decision are horrific for Las Vegas in 2025.
Carlson’s field goal percentage has waned since 2022 going from 91.9 percent to 86.7, 85.0, and currently 75.0 percent. At 12 of 16 on the year — his potential Week 4 game-winning field goal against the Chicago Bears was blocked — Carlson’s percentage currently is the second lowest with a 19 of 26 season in 2019 (73.1) being his worst. Cole, meanwhile, is having a down 2025 campaign with a 47.6 yards per punt average. He’s also suffered two blocked punts so far this year (tied for most in the NFL) and had two in 2024. No other team can approach that kind of ineptitude protecting their punter.
And that’s just the boot specialists under McMahon’s charge. Las Vegas’ punt and kick return coverage units are topsy turvy with the team getting torched on a 90-yard house call on a punt against the Washington Commanders in Week 3. Then, in Week 5, the Raiders were fortunate a holding call wiped out a kick return touchdown by the Indianapolis Colts. Not to mention the poor angles, lane discipline, and tackling ability (or lack thereof), the operation was a mess under McMahon and he had to go.
Suffice it to say but, the bar is set low for interim special teams boss Derius Swinton II.
And McMahon’s dismissal is likely one of many Raiders’ dominos to fall if Carroll remains head honcho this offseason. The 74-year-old coaching veteran perhaps will make additional changes to his crew beyond the in-season canning of McMahon.
But this brings me to another item: I can understand why Raider Nation is already in draft mode. The Raiders are 2-7 overall and have a disconcerting point differential of negative 81 points (scoring 139 total points while allowing 220). Also, the team’s remaining schedule is meek in terms of potential victories with likely the Week 12 clash with the incoming Cleveland Browns the lone contest of the remaining eight where the Raiders may be favored (stressing the “may”). So the “tank” talk is already present with fans hoping the team continues to stack losses to get a top pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
But I keep asking myself this question: Can Carroll and his coaching staff be trusted to develop future prospects and current players?
The Year 1 results so far in 2025 — from both the rookie and incumbent players perspective — are abysmal and contributes aplenty to the Raiders season so far. The way Carroll and his coaching staff put second-year offensive lineman Jackson Powers-Johnson (starting at center, then moving to right guard and competing with veteran Alex Cappa), to the development and usage of 2025 draft picks Jack Bech (second-round wide receiver), Darien Porter (third-round cornerback), Dont’e Thornton Jr. (fourth-round wideout), and to an extent Ashton Jeanty (running back and sixth overall selection) don’t inspire much.
Then there’s third-round offensive linemen Caleb Rogers and Charles Grant and fourth-round defensive tackle Tonka Hemingway and sixth-round defensive tackle JJ Pegues who can’t get active and play.
And who can forget how quickly the Raiders moved on from sixth-round pick Tommy Mellott. Granted, the ultra-athletic Montana State product was moving from quarterback to wide receiver in the NFL, but with his measurables (5-foot-11 and 4.39 speed) it seemed he’d be a practice squad rookie — at worst. Instead, he was waived on cutdown day and eventually signed with the New Orleans Saints.
“I have a lot of respect for Tommy, and there was a lot of hard decisions that we made the last couple of days. Ultimately, our responsibility, coach (Carroll) and myself, is to put the best 53, and then 17 after that, to get ready to win football games,” Las Vegas Raiders general manager John Spytek said of Mellott a day after cut day. “There’s always a development part of that, too. But there’s a reality, sometimes, that who is most ready, and who is furthest along and who can help this team win the most. Ultimately, we made some decisions that didn’t include him, for now.”
Mellott isn’t currently on an NFL roster which gives the Raiders some leeway in the decision. But pulling the plug so quickly and not even eyeing long-term development and projection is troubling. Despite what Carroll said about competing right away and winning a lot of games in Year 1.
If Carroll does remain this offseason and beyond, more dominos need to fall and a coaching staff assembled to get the most return on investment (ROI) on the resources Las Vegas uses on building the roster. Whether that be draft selections, free agent additions, or players brought in via trade.
Our Bill Williamson put it best:
