The Las Vegas Raiders could eventually turn into the Seattle Seahawks South. Las Vegas hired former Seattle head coach Pete Carroll this offseason, and Carroll has a lot of work to do. There is no side of the ball where the Raiders cannot be better, but a priority could be finding a quarterback.
One quarterback who makes sense for Carroll and Las Vegas is former Seahawks QB Russell Wilson. Is Wilson great now? No, but he is fairly efficient and would not be overly expensive. Not that the Raiders have to worry about that, as the team has more than $88 million in cap room this offseason.
But giving Wilson targets that he is familiar with would only help to speed up the process of the Raiders going from dismal offensively (Las Vegas averaged 18.2 points a game this past season, 29th in the NFL) to at least being competitive. The AFC West is tough, and unless Wilson, assuming he ends up with the Raiders, gets an upgrade in skill position players, the Raiders are doomed.
The Las Vegas Raiders could easily turn into Seattle Seahawks South
As the Raiders not only have a good amount of cap room but good draft capital as well, the organization could remake their offense into one that resembles the one Seattle had in 2021 and before. Wilson could play quarterback, Tyler Lockett, who was recently released by Seattle, could play one wideout position, and the Raiders could potentially trade for DK Metcalf.
Metcalf has requested a trade, and the Seahawks said they would honor that request, but the wide receiver also said he would like to go to a contender. That is where the limit of his power is reached, though. He does not have a no-trade clause, so Seattle could send him to any team that is willing to give the Seahawks a good return.
Las Vegas has the number six overall choice in the 2025 NFL draft. Seattle is unlikely to get that back from the Raiders if they move Metcalf there. But potentially, Seattle could get the Raiders' second-round choice (number 37 overall) and their first third-round pick (number 68 overall). That would give Seattle four picks in the first 68.
Metcalf also clearly enjoyed playing with Wilson because the two have worked out in the offseason after Wilson left the team. Plus, there is no reason to think Metcalf and Carroll do not get along. Playing across from Lockett would also bring a level of comfortability for all parties involved.
Watching Carroll coach a Raiders team that includes Wilson, Lockett, and Metcalf would not be fun for Seahawks fans, but there would be a small part of 12s that would be willing to root for the Raiders. At least, not while Las Vegas is playing the Seahawks. If Seattle and Las Vegas play (which they will in 2026), then the Raiders losing by 45 points would be just fine.