Less than 24 hours after his firing as offensive coordinator, Chip Kelly had some words for the Raiders.
In the wake of the team’s decision to move on from Kelly after Sunday’s 24-10 loss to the lowly Browns, the former collegiate whiz expressed gratitude for the chance with the organization, which is currently 2-9 under first-year coach Pete Carroll.
“I am grateful for the opportunity with the Raiders,” Kelly told Fox Sports’ Jay Glazer. “Bottom line in this league you have to win. I really loved those players, I’m a huge, HUGE Geno Smith fan, that was one of the best parts of this experience for me, working with Geno and those guys every day. But hey, we gotta win. I get it.”
Despite his love for embattled quarterback Smith, Kelly — the league’s highest-paid coordinator earning $6 million annually, per Pro Football Talk — helmed a sinking ship, with the highly touted offensive guru leading his unit to just 4.6 yards per play, the third worst in the league, and 3.6 yards per play in the Raiders’ last three games (the worst in the NFL).
Las Vegas’ offensive line is also ranked No. 31 in the league, according to Pro Football Focus, ahead of only the Los Angeles Chargers, whose entire unit is saddled with injuries, notably to studs Joe Alt and Rashawn Slater.
Kelly landed with the Raiders after winning a national championship with Ohio State as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.
Before Sunday’s firing, Caroll appeared to express some frustration with the play calling, which was Kelly’s main responsibility.
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“We have to run the football better, more,” Carroll said in October. “And we’re going to continue to work at it and see if we can’t continue to bring it to life. The running game has looked well in order right now, we need to get more of them. That’s part of it. That’s just mixing football. That’s how you do it. We don’t ever want to rely on the quarterback has to do the whole show, sitting in the shotgun, throw the football. Never coach that way. So we have to mix our stuff so we can use our play action game.”
The Raiders currently rank among the league’s worst teams, and would pick No. 5 overall in the 2026 NFL Draft behind the Titans, Giants, Saints and Jets, respectively.
Kelly’s firing marks the second coordinator shakeup this season, with the Raiders also parting ways with special teams coordinator Tom McMahon on Nov. 7.
