Until a decision is made, much of the conversation surrounding the Raiders in Las Vegas is about interim head coach Antonio Pierce and whether he will stay on as the permanent coach.
There’sno question that the energy around the team has completely changed since Pierce replaced Josh McDaniels, who was fired midseason. So far, the Raiders locker room has always been open about Pierce’s desire to land the job.
Former Dallas Cowboys wide receiver and NFL Hall of Famer Michael Irvin, who joined the team this offseason, clearly knew that. Irvin showed up for RG3 and The Ones, and while they were there, Raiders players said Pierce was their coach.This was not already known, as Pierce clearly won over the Raiders locker room, and this is further confirmation of that.
But listening to him speak and seeing the passion Irvin expressed about how the Raiders players supported their coach, it became clear that the team itself wanted him to stay. The decision is ultimately up to the Raiders, and the franchise is slowly going through the process. Pierce, meanwhile, is in talks with the Tennessee Titans and Atlanta Falcons, so the Raiders risk losing him before the process even begins.
Compounding the franchise’s woes is the fact that the Raiders recently decided to hire an outside coach despite having a successful interim coach in the building. Optics doing the same thing again can generally tax raiders and push them towards the breakthrough that players clearly want.
