Antonio Pierce deserves to be on the Raiders.
The Nevada Raiders’ head coach, Jon Gruden, left the team during the 2021 NFL season after it was discovered that he had sent offensive, misogynistic, and homosexual emails before signing on.
The Raiders named special teams director Rich Bisaccia as their interim head coach following their surprise postseason run.
But in the following offseason, they made the decision to hand the job to Josh McDaniels.
After firing McDaniels near the middle of the season, the Raiders named defensive coach Antonio Pierce is their interim head coach for this campaign.
The squad had a 3–5 record and seemed certain to be eliminated from the playoffs until Pierce took charge.
However, as of now, Pierce has led the Raiders to a 4-3 record, and the team has a 7-8 record overall.
After being shut out the previous week, the Raiders set a new mark for points by a single team and a new franchise record overall points in a game.
In addition to having a chance to make the playoffs, should they win their next two games and get some help along the way, the Raiders are coming off of what could be their two biggest wins in franchise history.
Two weeks ago, on a Thursday night, the Raiders crushed the Chargers, ending the team’s three-game losing streak and the Brandon Staley era of Los Angeles.
The Raiders, who had lost 3-0 to the Minnesota Vikings the week before, trounced the Chargers 63-32, including 42 throughout the first half.
But beating a weak Chargers team without Justin Herbert is one thing. But Pierce could have put in his best performance to date on Christmas Day against the Raiders.
When the Chiefs were in position to win the AFC West for the ninth consecutive season, Patrick Mahomes and company were halted by Las Vegas.
Las Vegas held Patrick Mahomes to just 235 passing yards in a 20-14 victory, and the Chiefs offense is still stumbling to the end line.
Antonio Pierce, the Las Vegas Raiders’ interim coach, is putting up a strong case to be named the team’s official coach after the Raiders easily defeated the Chargers then pulled off an unexpected upset over the Chiefs on Sunday.
Again, as long as something smells, looks, and sounds good, I don’t care. Triumph, defeat, or draw.” Pierce said on Tuesday,
“And I will be me, and they can be them.” And perhaps all of this is meant to make sure that after this bad boy finishes, we spend a lot more years together.
And perhaps Mark Davis observes the growth and advancement of our staff. He observes the Raiders performing in the manner that he desires. He senses that there is an audience behind us.
He sees team members who appreciate their work and a place where workers look forward to coming to work while relishing their time here. And we had to win in the end. And we currently have a 4-3 record, including mine.”
After manager Dave Ziegler or coach Josh McDaniels were fired over Halloween weekend, Pierce was promoted from linebackers coach to head coach. Pierce has motivated the Raiders to play outstanding football.
But their last two wins came following a pretty forgettable 3-0 home loss to the Minneapolis Vikings. Set a good example for them to heed. I felt okay about it. I was feeling good about him.
After his interview, Pierce “impressed” Davis, who at the time told ESPN that he was “intrigued” by Pierce and that he should “lead, instead of coach,” delegating responsibilities to coordinators and coaches.
The Raiders’ right tackle, Jermaine Eluemunor, recently stated that his teammates really enjoy playing with Pierce nor Champ Kelly, the auxiliary GM who was elevated to replace Ziegler.
But since Pierce is a black guy, Davis cannot appoint him as the Raiders’ coach of choice on his own.
The updated Rooney Rule mandates that Davis examine at least two “external” minority candidates for the position before making a hiring decision.
The Raiders have also boasted the NFL’s highest scoring defense since Pierce took over. In Week 8, they were ranked 22nd.
Since Week 9, the Raiders have dropped a league-low 12% of dropbacks, yet they have more sacks (24–16) under Pierce.
And their opponents’ overall QBR has dropped from 60 to 39 since Pierce became interim coach.