Both teams begin 2025 with new head coaches – Pete Carroll for the Raiders and Mike Vrabel for the Patriots.
Vrabel spent eight years as a player for New England where he became a three-time Super Bowl champion. He transitioned to coaching in 2011 and in 2018, was hired as the Tennessee Titans head coach, where he guided the team to two division titles and three playoff appearances.
Carroll, who has previously helmed the Patriots, Jets and Seahawks, is 11-7 all-time in Week 1 games. Now heading into his first game coaching the Raiders, his excitement – and expectations – are high.
“Because of where I am in my career, looking at this,” Carroll said last week, “it’s just such a joyful opportunity to me. … I really don’t feel that much different. But yet, there’s some things that, through the evolving of this last year, made a difference in the way I see things, and I’ve been able to implement and institute some things that I hadn’t done before that I’m really excited about seeing the results.”
The Patriots are 6-2 in their last eight games against the Raiders, but the Raiders have won the last two matchups. The Raiders will look to make it win three wins versus New England for the first time since a three-game streak from 1989-2002. However, the Raiders, visiting Foxborough for just the third time in the past 20 seasons, are one of seven NFL teams to have never won a game there since the stadium opened in 2002.
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