Raiders pre-camp roster move could derail Pete Carroll's debut before it's here

The Las Vegas Raiders are looking to put behind plenty of bad seasons since 2021 by bringing in former Super Bowl winning head coach Pete Carroll. The hope is that Carroll can do what he did with the Seattle Seahawks and turn them from a last place team into a champion. It will be easier said than done, especially in the tough AFC West.

As it turns out, the season might get tougher for Carroll and the Raiders.

On Friday, the Raiders announced that they were placing defensive tackle Christian Wilkins on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list before the start of training camp.

Raiders place Christian Wilkins on PUP list before training camp

This obviously isn't the time to panic. When is the time to panic is if Wilkins ends up on the PUP list for the start of the 2025 regular season. If that were to happen, Wilkins would automatically miss the first four games of the season.

Wilkins is still recovering from a Jones fracture that forced him to get surgery last October, and knocked him out for the remainder of the 2024 season. This offseason, Carroll has said that Wilkins' recovery would be "difficult," and was spotted still wearing a walking boot as of last month. So it's not entirely shocking that Wilkins is not going to be ready to practice at trainng camp.

Not having Wilkins for the start of the season would sting for the Raiders. After all, pairing Wilkins with star pass rusher Maxx Crosby makes for a dominant defensive line that could help them win some games in the AFC West. But if Wilkins is out, that would leave Leki Fotu or Zach Carter as the starter alongside Adam Butler.

For the first four games of the season, the Raiders face the New England Patriots on the road, the rival Los Angeles Chargers at home, the Washington Commanders on the road, and the Chicago Bears at home. So they would face two playoff contenders in the Commanders and Chargers, while facing teams looking to make a jump this season with new coaching staffs.

The Raiders will be a team to follow this summer, especially as Carroll looks to turn the team around into winners. But without Wilkins, it could make his job a lot more difficult at the start of the season.