Pete Carroll has a 'type' when it comes to defensive backs; this rookie 'fits the mold'

HENDERSON, Nev.

If you know Pete Carroll, then you know how the Las Vegas Raiders coach prefers his defensive backs: tall, long and fast.

The Legend of Boom secondary that helped Carroll and the Seattle Seahawks win Super Bowl XLVIII was full of cornerbacks and safeties who fit that archetype.

The core members were safety Kam Chancellor (6-foot-3, 225 pounds), cornerback Richard Sherman (6-3, 195), cornerback Brandon Browner (6-4, 221), cornerback Byron Maxwell (6-1, 207), nickelback Walter Thurmond III (5-11, 190) and safety Earl Thomas (5-10, 202 pounds).

And while Thomas was on the small side for a safety, he more than made up for it with his freakish athleticism, elite speed and fearless physicality.

Advertisement Of course, having attractive physical attributes doesnt guarantee anything.

There are tall, long and fast defensive backs available in the draft every year.

What sets Carroll apart is knowing what to do with those players once he gets them.

He is elite at finding the traits in a player, what they can do, and then featuring them in that spot, Washington Commanders coach Dan Quinn said earlier this month.

He finds out the things that you can be truly excellent at, and then he works the hell out of it.

Quinn was the Seahawks defensive coordinator in 2013 and 2014 for both of Carrolls Super Bowl appearances in Seattle.

They had an embarrassment of riches on defense, but they wouldnt have reached the heights they did if the coaching staff hadnt maximized their capabilities.

That was knowledge that Carroll had accumulated over nearly two decades of experience as a defensive backs coach and defensive coordinator.

Its not to say like I only can have safeties that are this or I can only have corners that are this, Quinn said.

It was really about finding out the things that they can do and then (asking) how would we feature them in a certain way, much like offensive players do.

Like, this guy is really good in the slot: Lets put him in there because he can win on option routes and break somebodys leverage off.

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You say, This player with unique traits, how do we feature them? Naturally, it took time for Carroll to build that secondary.

When he was hired by the Seahawks in 2011, they were coming off a season in which they finished 27th in the league in pass defense.

Turning that around and sustaining it for most of his 14-year tenure took both an exceptional eye for talent and the ability to help it grow.

Some guys just say they want them to be big, fast and strong, all that kind of good stuff, but hes detailed in knowing exactly what hes trying to get out of it, Seahawks defensive backs coach Karl Scott, who worked with Carroll from 2022 to 2023, said recently.

And then, honestly, what type of person is he dealing with? Not good guy/bad guy, but is that person comfortable being themselves? Do they know who they are? ...

The guys who are not afraid to be who they are, those are the guys he falls in love with.

When Carroll took the Raiders job this offseason, he inherited a secondary that was better they were 15th in pass defense in 2024 but still nothing special.

As he worked alongside general manager John Spytek to improve the unit, a familiar theme emerged in the types of players they retained and added.

Advertisement In free agency, they re-signed Isaiah Pola-Mao (6-4, 205) to start at free safety.

They picked up Jeremy Chinn (6-3, 220) to start at strong safety.

They also took a flier on Eric Stokes (6-1, 194) to compete for a role at outside cornerback.

In the draft, Carroll and Spytek rolled the dice on cornerback Darien Porter in the third round.

Hes 6-3, 195, and ran a 4.3-second 40-yard dash but was only a one-year starter at Iowa State.

That was largely because, like Sherman, he transitioned from receiver to corner in college.

Porter has a lot of potential, but he also needs to refine his fundamentals and technique.

Sherman had plenty of the same question marks, which is why he fell to the fifth round in the 2011 draft.

While its a bit ambitious to compare Porter to a likely Hall of Famer, no one had those expectations for Sherman when he was drafted, either.

Given his track record, its no surprise Carroll is confident in his ability to get the most out of players like Porter.

Causing a storm in the secondary Get to know our newest cornerback, Darien Porter pic.twitter.com/W8rZ6cvH8p Las Vegas Raiders (@Raiders) April 26, 2025 Weve always looked for guys that are really fast and guys that are really long and tall because of the style of the way we coach them, Carroll said.

Darien, hes a lot like Richard Sherman was.

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Theres a lot of similarities in the makeup of these two kids.

Richards history is pretty bright, so I have really high expectations for how this works out with Darien.

He kind of fits the mold.

With the Seahawks, Carroll installed a Cover 3-based coverage scheme along with defensive coordinators Gus Bradley (2011-12) and Quinn.

That called for a middle-of-the-field safety who was capable of flying from sideline to sideline and a versatile box safety who could also line up in the slot.

The final piece of the equation was lanky, athletic, physical cornerbacks who could disrupt receivers at the line of scrimmage and play press-man coverage, but also drop into a variety of zones.

Advertisement Carroll found safeties Chancellor and Thomas and a nickelback in Thurmond in the 2010 draft, but the Seahawks went into the 2011 offseason lacking difference-makers at outside cornerback.

First came the signing of Browner, whod gone undrafted in 2005 and had played in the Canadian Football League from 2006 to 2010.

Then the Seahawks added Sherman and Maxwell on Day 3 of the 2011 draft.

Although Browner started every game that season, Sherman and Maxwell were fourth and fifth on the cornerback depth chart, respectively.

The coaching staff knew Sherman, in particular, had special ball skills, but he was still early in the process of learning the nuances of the position.

During practices early in the season, his progress accelerated.

He was remarkable, Quinn said.

The best of the best players whove developed also have a good self-awareness of the things they want to work on.

Richards like a classic example of that.

He didnt have years of playing corner, but he had years of catching the ball.

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He was exceptional at working on things at the line of scrimmage like technique and the footwork.

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And its doing those types of skills over and over again.

After Marcus Trufant and Thurmond were placed on season-ending injured reserve after Week 7, Sherman got his shot as a starter.

Hed go on to start every game for the next five seasons, making four All-Pro teams, but it all started with his work ethic.

Richard Sherman is one of the most competitive people Ive been around, Quinn said.

He just is an absolute dawg of a competitor.

That type of attitude is what it takes to develop.

When youre trying to become great at something, you have to put in the time, and you have to do extra, and you have to get feedback.

You have to be willing to accept that feedback.

And when it came to giving that feedback, Carroll was as good as anybody.

Advertisement Pete was exceptional at the smallest of details, Quinn said.

Look where your hand is.

Watch where this could be.

Get more extension this way.

And if you have that type of teaching combined with that type of work ethic and resilience, then youve got a chance for somebody to turn out exceptional.

But it wasnt always smooth sailing.

Carroll made the playoffs in nine of his first 11 seasons with the Seahawks, but 2021 was a down year.

The team finished 7-10 and missed the playoffs.

And while the defense was solid overall, the secondary was awful, finishing 31st in the league in passing defense.

It was clear the unit needed help.

The Seahawks landed an answer that offseason in Tariq Woolen.

The cornerback out of Texas-San Antonio was 6-4, 210 pounds, ran a blazing 4.26-second 40-yard dash and had upper-echelon athleticism, but he still fell to the fifth round.

In a case of deja vu, Woolen had spent his first three seasons at UTSA at receiver before transitioning to cornerback.

And just like Sherman, he had two years at corner under his belt, but was still raw.

When you talk about the measurables and the testing and all that stuff, he was on the upper side of the quadrant, Scott said of Woolen.

You usually dont see a guy with his size, length, height.

And then, obviously, you talk about his all-world speed.

The physical traits were there.

When you meet Tariq, hes a guy whos himself.

He knows who he is.

Hes aware that his physical abilities are pretty unique.

He was pretty new to the position, but I thought we all had in our mind that he had enough tools naturally given to him that we could help him with the other side of the game that he was still learning or developing.

The Seahawks proved to be right, as Woolen started all 17 games and made the Pro Bowl in 2022.

Porter, who also transitioned to cornerback, is Carrolls next case study.

Theyre both tall, long guys, but I think athletically, (Im more like) Tariq than Richard Sherman, Porter said.

Im just looking to take all the coaching I can to get to the level of those guys.

Besides having alluring physical traits, the Raiders were also high on Porters mental makeup.

He was raised in a military family, earned academic honors at Iowa State and was praised by Cyclones coach Matt Campbell for his character.

While Porter has plenty to work on, the Raiders have no doubts about his desire.

Hell have to compete with Stokes, Jakorian Bennett and Decamerion Richardson for playing time, and hes likely to start the season on the bench.

Advertisement Weve been doing it for a long time, and so theres a real style to it and a real technique and skill to it that we share with these guys, Carroll said.

And if they have the right makeup that were looking for, then we can bring them along quickly.

Carroll has done this before, and the Raiders are betting he can do it again.

(Top photos: Ethan Miller and Candice Ward / Getty Images).

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