Pete Carroll became the oldest head coach in NFL history when the Raiders’ game in New England kicked off on Sunday, and he became the oldest coach to win a game a few hours later.
Carroll guided the Raiders to a 20-13 win over the Patriots in his first game as the head coach of Las Vegas. He had an old friend from Seattle to thank for much of the help along the way.
Quarterback Geno Smith went 24-of-34 for 362 yards, including a 36-yard bomb to rookie Dont’e Thornton late in the fourth quarter that helped seal the win for the Raiders. Smith, who joined the team in a trade with the Seahawks this offseason, also threw a touchdown to Tre Tucker in the first quarter and hooked up with Jakobi Meyers eight times for 97 yards on the day.
He also connected with tight end Brock Bowers five times for 103 yards, but Bowers had to leave the game with a knee injury in the second half. His status will be something to monitor ahead of a Week 2 matchup with the Chargers. Linebacker Elandon Roberts also left the game with an elbow injury.
The Raiders also saw running back Ashton Jeanty score his first NFL touchdown, but the first-round pick struggled to find daylight, finishing with 38 yards on 19 carries.
New England had hoped to make Mike Vrabel a winner in his first game as their head coach, and they took a 10-7 lead into halftime. But their offense never found its footing after the break. Drake Maye threw an interception to end their first drive of the half, and the team punted on its next four possessions to lose their chance of coming out on top.
They’ll move on to face the Dolphins, hoping to get cornerback Christian Gonzalez healthy enough to play after he missed Sunday’s game against Smith and the Raiders’ passing attack.
