This is wild: The Raiders owe $50 million to fired coaches in 2026
After the Las Vegas Raiders fired yet another head coach, Pete Carroll, they owe a staggering amount to coaches that are no longer with the team.
The Las Vegas Raiders are entering the 2026 season with a bill the NFL has quite literally never seen before. According to contract obligations, Mark Davis and the Raiders will spend nearly $50 million next season paying former coaches who are no longer part of the team, a staggering figure that highlights years of instability at the top of the organization.
No team in league history has ever carried this much dead money at the head coaching position.
— Las Vegas Raiders (@Raiders) January 5, 2026
The jaw-dropping breakdown
Here’s how the Raiders’ coaching payroll shakes out for next season for coaches who are already gone:
- Antonio Pierce: $8 million
- Josh McDaniels: $10 million
- Jon Gruden: $10 million
- Pete Carroll: $16 million
- Chip Kelly: $6 million
That’s $50 million committed to coaching contracts that are no longer delivering wins, schemes, or leadership on the field. This situation didn’t happen overnight. It’s the result of a decade-long cycle of desperation hires, short leashes, and constant philosophical resets:
- Gruden’s 10-year contract blew up amid controversy.
- McDaniels’ tenure collapsed quickly, but his deal didn’t.
- Pierce was elevated, then dismissed, before stability could take hold.
- Carroll and Kelly were brought in with hope, and exited just as quickly.
Each move was made in isolation. Together, they’ve created an unprecedented financial mess.
While $50 million is shocking on its own, the bigger issue is what it represents: organizational whiplash. Different systems. Different voices. Different timelines. Every coaching change resets development for quarterbacks, defensive cores, and draft plans.
Unlike player contracts, coaching money doesn’t disappear when a coach is fired. Owners pay every dollar. And in this case, Mark Davis is now footing a bill that rivals the annual payroll of some entire position groups across the NFL, just to move on from mistakes.
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