Raiders Interim Coach Antonio Pierce Is Many Things Fired Coach Josh McDaniels Is Not
It took Antonio Pierce about 45 seconds to win his first press conference as the Las Vegas Raiders new interim coach.
"It's a new day, it's a new chapter, it's a new era, it's a new mindset," Pierce said unprompted Wednesday afternoon. "What is that mindset? It's that of the Raider pride, the commitment to excellence, and making sure our alumni, our fan base, and Raider Nation are proud of what they see on the field.
"What does that look like? Tough, passionate, effort, energy, and that enthusiasm that you see when we all watched our kids and these young men, who are now pro athletes, played when they were in Pop Warner, having that love for the game."
So Pierce quotes Al Davis "commitment to excellence," gives a nod to the fans, and talked of playing hard. All good stuff. And then this:
LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 23: Las Vega Raiders assistant coach Antonio Pierce yells at Maxx Crosby (98) during the NFL game featuring the Houston Texans against the Las Vegas Raiders on October 23, 2022 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by John Rivera/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Antonio Pierce's First Victory Is Winning Over Team
"We're tired of losing," Pierce announced. "It's not a good feeling. We're a production-based business. We're about competition, being competitive, and playing with an edge and a swag and a certain confidence that, when we walk out that damn tunnel, that everybody watching TV can see it and the product on the field is something we're proud of."
Well done.
The man replacing Josh McDaniels, who was fired late Tuesday (early Wednesday on the east coast), is a straight talker. Which McDaniels was not.
"I'm not a long winded person," Pierce said. "I'm not going to give you a dialogue or write an essay. I get right to the point. It's black and white. You know how I feel when I walk out the door."
He's a former player. McDaniels was not.
EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - OCTOBER 25: Antonio Pierce #58 of the New York Giants gets the crowd going against the Arizona Cardinals on October 25, 2009 at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images)
Antonio Pierce Was Like His Raiders Players
"I'm a former player. I touch players," Pierce said. "I can relate to them. I've done the same things they've done. I walked the same paths they walked. I felt the same pain they felt.
"So there's nothing or any emotional ride or roller coaster that they haven't gone through this year or the two years I've been with them that I haven't felt. My personality will come out and reflect on this team.
"Hopefully we see that on Sunday."
Pierce shaved his head a long time ago but he intends to coach like he played for the Giants many years ago: Like his hair's on fire.
McDaniels coached like he was trying to out-think the other team.
So In many respects Pierce is things McDaniels was not and that's probably what owner Mark Davis is searching for initially in making this change.
But the most consequential thing Pierce must be that McDaniels was not is a winner. Simple.
And also very difficult.
Because, let us not forget, the Raiders have not been a good team for a while. They weren't good last year at 6-11. They're 3-5 this year and so bad at times that they lost to the Chicago Bears with rookie Tyson Bagent starting at quarterback.
So there are reasons this club has been merely treading water in the best times and drowning in defeat much of the other time the past 21 months McDaniels was the coach.
DETROIT, MICHIGAN - OCTOBER 30: Jimmy Garoppolo #10 of the Las Vegas Raiders reacts in the fourth quarter against the Detroit Lions at Ford Field on October 30, 2023 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Mike Mulholland/Getty Images)
Antonio Pierce Benches Jimmy G
A couple of those reasons:
The quarterback play has been poor to middling. And that has already cost Jimmy Garoppolo his starting job. On Wednesday, Pierce announced the NFL's interception leader is being benched and rookie Aidan O'Connell will start Sunday's game against the New York Giants.
Another reason for the struggles is personnel and depth haven't lived up to expectations.
Take the Raiders 2023 draft class. Please. Fired general manager Dave Ziegler had five draft picks in the top 104 selections of that draft. And the haul has contributed only 11 pass receptions, 30 tackles and a sack in eight games.
McDaniels talked multiple times of fixing the Las Vegas offense. After all, he is an offense-minded coach, the player caller, and designer of the scheme. But all the talk and work resulted in the Raiders averaging 16 points per game on offense this season.
Receiver Davante Adams noted (complained?) in the offseason that McDaniels had the most complex offense to learn he'd ever seen. Weird, because that complicated system somehow got figured out most weeks by opposing defenses.
Pierce, a former linebacker and promoted from linebackers coach, has an answer to those problems. And it won't be hard for opposing offenses to figure out but might be hard to stop:
It's as simple as get the ball to the playmakers.
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - OCTOBER 22: Davante Adams #17 of the Las Vegas Raiders drops a pass during the fourth quarter against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on October 22, 2023 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
Raiders Offense Will Get The Ball To Stars
Adams is one of the most dynamic receivers in the NFL when quarterbacks get him the ball. Running back Josh Jacobs led the NFL in rushing last year. The Raiders offense is going to ride them.
"They know exactly the task and the plan going forward and what kind of offense we want to portray," Pierce said. "No, are you going to sit there and rip up the whole playbook? No. But you better go to your key guys.
"I'm not a fool. I'm a player. Remember I was a player before I was a coach. Player ran business.
None of this is to suggest McDaniels is not a good coach. He did win Super Bowls as an offensive coordinator in New England. But maybe his dour personality wasn't suited for being a head coach.
And that personality seeped into the locker room and became the team's personality.
That's not Pierce. And so the Raiders' personality may be about to change.
"I told , when they walk in this door, I need to feel them," Pierce said. "They're going to feel me 100 percent, but I've got to feel them. I need that personality. This building needs personality."