The Las Vegas Raiders have many questions that will need answering once the season ends and the offseason gets here. One of the biggest involves head coach Antonio Pierce and whether he will remain with the team for next season or if owner Mark Davis will choose to move on after just one season.
There was a lot of optimism surrounding the Raiders when Pierce took over in an interim role at the end of last season, which ultimately led him to get the job permanently. But obviously, things haven’t gone the Raiders way this year as they currently have the worst record in the NFL at 2-12.
While nothing is for certain, it doesn’t sound as if Davis is the biggest believer in Pierce as, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter in an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show, Davis did not back Pierce at the recent NFL Owners Meetings:
“Mark Davis had the chance to stand behind Antonio Pierce at the owners meetings and he didn’t..
It didn’t sound like he is an absolute lock to be back with the Raiders at all” ~ @AdamSchefter #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/d8fSaPvGaZ
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) December 16, 2024
As both Schefter and McAfee noted, it is very difficult to judge Pierce based on this season with the team not having a quarterback. And the ones they do have have been injured all season long. The Raiders did try to move up in the draft to take one but were unable to swing a deal, and for all six of the top quarterbacks, being taken ahead of them was out of their control.
Despite all of the issues, Pierce does still have the Raiders playing hard for him. Since the bye week, all five of the Raiders’ games have been within one score going into the fourth quarter. The wins aren’t coming, but it isn’t due to a lack of effort, and he has not lost the locker room.
Davis could decide that Pierce isn’t the right person to lead the Raiders, and he could prove to be right in that call. But it is absolutely impossible to assess what Pierce is capable of in these circumstances properly, and if the Raiders do move on, there is little doubt he will land somewhere else with another great opportunity.
Raiders Maxx Crosby undergoes season-ending ankle surgery
As if the quarterback issues weren’t enough to make things difficult for Antonio Pierce, the Raiders were dealt another blow as superstar defensive end Maxx Crosby will miss the rest of the season after undergoing ankle surgery.
Crosby originally injured the ankle in Week 2 but missed just one game. However, he aggravated the ankle further in Week 14, and the extent of the damage is unknown. However, Crosby made it clear that he would always do anything in his power to be on the field for the fans.
