Getty Las Vegas Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce.
The Las Vegas Raiders were widely expected to use their first-round pick to address quarterback, offensive line or cornerback but pulled off a surprise when they selected tight end Brock Bowers with the No. 13 pick. Former Alabama cornerback Terrion Arnold was one player getting linked to the team and he recently claimed that they had him so closely ranked with Bowers that they had to flip a coin to decide.
However, the Raiders are now claiming there’s no truth to that. Head coach Antonio Pierce reached out to ESPN’s Ryan Clark to clear the air.
“As soon as the last two QBS Went off the board. We SAID BOWERS all the way,” Pierce told Clark, per a May 9 X post.
Perhaps there was something lost in translation or an assistant coach could’ve reached out to Arnold to let him know that the decision was close. Based on what Pierce is saying, Bowers was always going to be the pick but if another team had drafted the tight end, then maybe Arnold was next on the draft board. Arnold lasted until the No. 24 pick when the Detroit Lions selected him so if they truly wanted him that bad, they could’ve traded back into the first round.
Spoke to @Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce, & denied speaking to Terrion Arnold. “No call, and no coin flip.”
“As soon as the last two QBS Went off the board. We SAID BOWERS all the way.” -AP
He also said the Bowers’ pick was ready before the Raiders were on the clock.
Tom Telesco Addresses Terrion Arnold’s Comments
NFL teams are typically very prepared for a lot of different scenarios heading into the draft. Raiders general manager Tom Telesco heard about Arnold’s comments and made light of them.
“Typically, I use a magic 8-ball and not a coin,” Telesco said during the May 9 episode of “NFL Total Access.” “But no, part of that draft process, and we do this really two weeks, we’ll go through all the different scenarios of what could happen in the first round and how we would react to is and discuss it. When you’re picking 13, there aren’t that many scenarios to go through. So obviously we had gone through the scenario of players being gone and Brock Bowers is there, and we discussed in a small group — if that happened like, hey, we’re gonna take Brock. So we had gone through the process.
“On draft day, certainly in the first round and a little bit in the second round, there’s not a whole lot of discussion when you’re on the clock because you’ve already gone through the scenario of what could play out and what you’re going to do. So that’s what happened with Brock.”
It appears the Raiders were pretty united on taking Bowers once all of the top quarterbacks were off the board.
Were Las Vegas Raiders Considering Bo Nix or J.J. McCarthy?
One thing that stood out about Pierce’s comments to Clark is that he said that once the “last two QBs” went off the board, the team focused on Bowers. That sounds like the Raiders may have been considering J.J. McCarthy, who was drafted at No. 10 by the Minnesota Vikings, or Bo Nix, who was selected at No. 12 by the Denver Broncos.
The Raiders were mostly linked to Jayden Daniels and Michael Penix Jr. heading into the draft so it didn’t appear they had interest in Nix or McCarthy. Pierce may have been misspeaking but it’s possible to interpret his comments in a way that suggests the Raiders were willing to take any of the top-six quarterbacks.
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Antonio Pierce Has Strong Response to Terrion Arnold’s Coin Flip Comment