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The Super Bowl matchup wasn’t ideal for the Las Vegas Raiders. The Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers are both historic rivals of the franchise and now they have to play host.
The two teams are set to play in the Raiders’ Allegiant Stadium, which is something that new head coach Antonio Pierce is fine with as long as they don’t overstay their welcome.
“I’m glad they get to see it just for a day, then they get the hell out,” Pierce told Heavy Sports on the red carpet for the NFL Honors on February 8.
Pierce wasn’t too eager to linger on the two hated rivals taking over Las Vegas for the week but the only way to stop that from happening is if the Raiders would’ve played better in 2023. However, Pierce only coached the team for nine games and beat the Chiefs in Kansas City. Now that he’s the head coach, he’ll have more of a say over how the team performs.
Antonio Pierce Praises Maxx Crosby
Defensive end Maxx Crosby was up for Defensive Player of the Year for his work in 2023 but didn’t end up getting a single first-place vote. Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett took home the trophy.
Crosby certainly had Antonio Pierce’s vote and spoke about how much of a luxury it is to have a player like him on his team.
“I thought Maxx played his a** off this year,” Pierce told Heavy Sports. “I don’t think too many guys can say that they have a player on their team that plays almost every single snap on the defensive line with that effort, that intensity, that purpose like him.”
Crosby played hurt much of the season so the fact that he was a finalist at the end of the season was impressive enough.
Maxx Crosby Happy to Have Antonio Pierce as Head Coach
Though Antonio Pierce did well as interim head coach, it wasn’t a guarantee that he would get the full-time job this offseason. This led Maxx Crosby to threaten a trade request if the Raiders didn’t hire Pierce.
He felt like it was necessary to take that step to ensure that he got the coach he wanted.
“I mean, that’s sort of what it looked like for the outside world,” Crosby told Heavy Sports in a February 1 interview. “There are some things I can’t necessarily get into, but there are a lot more details that’s between myself and everybody involved. It is what it is. I still stand on what I said. I was very, very passionate about that. I’ve been here for five years, going on six now. And I’ve earned the right to have an opinion and share how I feel. I put in the work every single day. To this day, I’m in the building more than anybody. I do it every day, I put my body on the line for this team and this organization. So you know, there are certain things going on behind the scenes. I won’t get into it. It is what it is. But we move forward. Me and Mark [Davis] are great, everybody’s great. We’re just here to win, and that’s all that matters.”
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