Raiders' Antonio Pierce After 1 Year at the Helm

Shortly after the Las Vegas Raiders’ embarrassing loss to the Lions on Monday Night Football last season, team owner Mark Davis decided to fire Josh McDaniels and replace linebackers coach Antonio Pierce with the head coaching position. It was a move the team desperately needed at the time

Still, Pierce deals with the consequences of McDaniels’ decisions on a weekly basis but is making the best of the situation. The final nine games of last season proved that the Raiders made the right decision, even though their record this season suggests they are just as bad as they were under McDaniels.

But even if they lose, the Raiders play with pride under Pierce, which wasn’t always true under McDaniels.

It’s been a rough season for Pierce and the Raiders as so many things went wrong. Pierce said he is grateful for the opportunity to be a head coach in the National Football League; Coaching in the NFL is another feather in Pierce’s cap.

Yet the year since then has passed quickly, as has Pierce’s promotion.

“Quick, you blink and there it is again. Last night I was making sure my phone wasn’t ringing. But no, honestly, I learn so much in a year. And you can’t prepare for that. You can’t sit there and think you know what’s going to happen because every day when I walk through this door something new happens, right?

“Every match creates a new obstacle, a new challenge for us. The squad, the coaching staff and the building. And I think I rely on the key people around me, whose support, knowledge I trust, to whom I pass on my thoughts. It was good to get ideas from them. But as I said, a year ago today If you asked me, I’d probably say ‘No’, right?

Pierce spent over a decade as a player in the National Football League, winning one of the most improbable Super Bowls in NFL history.

However, this is completely different from being the head coach of a team, especially one with such a rich history. Pierce said that even though things didn’t go perfectly, he is still grateful for the experience of being a professional head coach.

“I think because of where I’m at now, I understand our team better, I understand better what we need to do to fix the problems, and we have to continue to do that consistently.” Pierce said. “And I think the best part about this is that it’s never over, right? So that’s my goal, and of course I’m very lucky to be in this position.”

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