Raiders Found Their Next Coach And Had All Search Called Off…

How do you know when you’ve found what you’re looking for?

Although the answer seems apparent, I contend that misinterpreting the question is largely to blame for the world’s waste of time. The issue, as you can see, is that most people work in the incorrect direction. Instead of beginning at the beginning, they discover something that appeals to them, and then they persuade themselves that this must be what they’re searching for. This is partly because they never took the time to figure out exactly what it is they need or want.

If there’s one thing Mark Davis has done wrong, it’s jumping to conclusions before fully comprehending the question, especially when attempting to address the organization’s head coaching issue. He acknowledges that in 2018 he selected Jon Gruden before considering all of his options, and that in 2022 he was deceived by the “Patriots Way” and did not recognize Josh McDaniels for the complete failure that he is as a coach.

Now that 2023 and 2024 are here, Davis has one more chance to get it right, but this time, the solution is right in front of him.

The next coach of the Raiders should be Antonio Pierce.

Although it might appear that this is history repeating itself and that Pierce is what this organization needs, the reality is that Pierce is the ideal example of what happens when you understand what makes a great coach.

Organizationally, there appear to be three options for head coaches: appoint a defensive or offensive genius, or bring in a CEO-type and surround him with experts.

Look around the league, and you can see successful examples of all three: Sean McVay and Kyle Shannahan are offensive gurus, Mike Tomlin and DeMeco Ryans are defensive-minded guys with success (albeit pretty early into Ryans’ tenure), while John Harbaugh and Dan Campbell are success stories from the third bucket.

And of all the names on this list, it’s Campbell who has done the most in opening up a pathway for guys like Pierce. Obviously, in his case, he’s not in either of the first two categories (even though he played defense, he has never called plays at the NFL level) — and yet the secret sauce of a CEO-type lies not in calling plays, but in creating culture.

And in that regard, how can you argue with what has happened since he took over as interim coach?

while that seems to be expected in the short-term, the fact that the Raiders are still thriving months later (while essentially being eliminated from the playoffs) speaks volumes to me. And it has translated onto the field too — not just in the form of wins, but in characteristics like discipline and toughness.

For me, it’s not just that they beat the Chargers with a record number of points one week after holding a team to just a field goal — or that they went into Kansas City on Christmas and came away with a convincing victory. It’s how it looked.

The Raiders offense scored 63 points and didn’t let up after taking an early lead, which was a trademark of theirs under McDaniels, one week after they had scored zero points. In addition, the Raiders offense managed to string together enough plays to run the ball down Kansas City’s throat in the closing minutes of the game against the Chiefs—even without their All-Pro running back and left tackle—despite failing to complete a pass in the last 47 minutes.

And how about this? Over the last three weeks, the Raiders are second in the NFL in penalty yards per game (29.0), they’re fourth in takeaways (7), they’re first in points allowed per game (12.7) and tied for ninth in giveaways (3). For a Raiders fan, the first category alone tells me everything I need to know about Pierce and his leadership.

Again: discipline and toughness.

And to think he’s doing it all without an answer at quarterback and with almost nothing to play for!

From my perspective, the two things the Raiders need in a coach are a guy who can change the losing culture and a guy who can give fans hope to believe that the next decade is going to be very different than the last one. In Pierce’s case, I can’t think of a guy I would trust more to do those two things right now.

For starters, he has shown it — but he’s also a guy who gets it. He gets what it means to be a Raider, he gets what the organization has stood for and he represents in an uncanny way the aura and essence of what it means to be a Raider.

You see, even though my opinions of Pierce have been vacillating for the past few weeks, the decisive moment occurred on Christmas Day. It wasn’t the final whistle, though; rather, it was what transpired in the locker room roughly fifteen minutes later.

Pierce assembled the team for a brief speech with music blaring and cigars lit. While most of what he said will be forgotten, the way he ended things really sealed the deal for me. Thinking back on the Raiders’ victory and their method of victory as well as the confidence and vigor he witnessed in that locker room, he said this: