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The Las Vegas Raiders are set to launch their head coaching search following their Week 18 game against the Denver Broncos. Interim head coach Antonio Pierce has won over the locker room but the team will undergo a full search regardless, according to Las Vegas Review-Journal.
Wide receiver Davante Adams has already made his endorsement of Pierce very clear. Defensive end Maxx Crosby has been vocal about his support of the coach and doubled down.
“There’s only 32 [NFL] head coaches in the whole world,” Crosby said on January 4, per ESPN’s Paul Gutierrez, “so you’ve got to find a leader of men. And when you’ve got one of them in the building currently, I don’t know why you would let them go.”
There’s been talk of the Raiders going after a big name like Michigan’s Jim Harbaugh. While it’s easy to see owner Mark Davis getting starry-eyed, Crosby made a passionate plea about retaining Pierce because he’s fed up with losing and he’s fed up with Davis making coaching changes.
“I’ve made the playoffs one time in five years. It’s b*******,” Crosby said. “And we’ve got to figure out what we’re going to do moving forward. And I’m sick of change. I’m sick of losing. I just want stability and f****** consistency, and that’s all that matters to me. I want to win.”
What Will Happen if Antonio Pierce Isn’t Retained?
This is becoming a potentially explosive situation for Mark Davis. Just two years ago, former interim head coach Rich Bisaccia led the Raiders to the playoffs but was replaced by Josh McDaniels. Maxx Crosby had endorsed Bisaccia for the full-time head coach job, but Davis went against what his players wanted.
The McDaniels situation was a bust, and the coach was fired during this season. Now Davis is in a situation where he may have to move on from a popular interim head coach once again. If that were the case, it’s easy to see the players start to turn on the owner. As Crosby pointed out, he’s only been in the playoffs once. He works as hard as any player in the NFL and he’s clearly fed up with losing.
If Pierce isn’t hired, it will likely take a powerful personality like Harbaugh to keep the locker room together, but going with a first-time head coach could be a recipe for disaster.
Maxx Crosby on Pierce and the importance of having fun when you come to work:
Should Las Vegas Raiders Hire Antonio Pierce?
Pierce has certainly done enough to be strongly considered for the Raiders’ head coaching job. His record is only 4-4, but he has a signature win against the Kansas City Chiefs and a historic 63-point performance against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Unlike Bisaccia, Pierce wasn’t able to lead the Raiders to the playoffs but the situations are different. Las Vegas has had a much tougher schedule to end the 2023 season than they did in 2021. Plus, Pierce has a rookie quarterback in Aidan O’Connell while Bisaccia had Derek Carr.
It’s easy to get talked into the Raiders hiring a big name like Harbaugh, but if he’s not available, Pierce is the logical choice to lead the team going forward.
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Raiders DE Maxx Crosby Puts Owner Mark Davis on Notice