There are sure to be plenty of NFL head coaching jobs available next week once the 18 non-playoff teams evaluate their seasons and plan for the future. One job that may not be open is the Las Vegas Raiders, despite making Josh McDaniels the first fired head coach of the 2023 season.
Then-Raiders linebackers coach Antonio Pierce took over for McDaniels in Week 9 and Las Vegas has played better for the most part since the coaching change. They are 4-4 with Pierce as head coach and have a chance to finish with a winning record under him with a win in Week 18.
That has led a lot of people around the league to believe that the Raiders will stick with Pierce and remove his interim tag after the season. Though Las Vegas hasn’t made its plans clear yet, some Raiders employees are pulling for Pierce.
“(Mark Davis) hasn’t tipped his hand yet, but I’m hoping Antonio gets the job,” an anonymous Raiders source told Josina Anderson. “He’s a straight-shooter. He doesn’t mince words when he’s talking to people. He has great football knowledge as a former player. He has great energy everyday. He’s very consistent. He’s a leader. He knows how to relate and that’s what we need.”
Numbers never lie
There's no denying that the Raiders have been a better team since Antonio Pierce was named interim head coach. Reading further into their 4-4 record with him show wins that include a 20-13 triumph over the Kansas City Chiefs on the road and a 63-21 blowout over the Los Angeles Chargers.
The latter led to the immediate dismissal of Chargers head coach Brandon Staley after the Raiders scored the most points in franchise history against LA.
The changes are most noticeable on defense, where Vegas has allowed 16.25 points per game in its last eight games. That has allowed the Raiders to stay in most games during the stretch run of the season.
Though the Raiders won’t be able to backdoor their way into the playoffs after a resurgent second half of the season, they've likely found their next head coach in Antonio Pierce.
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