The Raiders hire Antonio Pierce as head coach after removing the interim tag.

Nevada’s Henderson (AP): Mark Davis may have waited to see if the Las Vegas Raiders could entice a coach from an exceptionally large pool of available candidates.

Furthermore, despite Antonio Pierce’s scant experience, the Raiders owner decided he had accomplished enough since taking over as interim coach on Halloween night to be given a full-time position.

The Raiders crossed off the phrase “interim” in a post on X, the social media site that was once known as Twitter, to announce the hiring of Pierce as their new coach on Friday. Together with Marty Feldman, Tom Cable, and Art Shell, he is the fourth interim coach the Raiders have promoted.

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45-year-old Pierce became the interim coach following

was let go. Under his leadership, the Raiders went 5-4, and as a team, they finished 8-9.

Las Vegas tackle Jermaine Eluemunor wrote on X, “I can’t think of anyone more deserving.” “In Vegas, there is only one way that needs to exist: the Raider way.”

This is true even if Pete Carroll, Bill Belichick, and Mike Vrabel are available, and Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh has conducted some NFL interviews after guiding the Wolverines to the collegiate national championship.

Two years ago, after hiring McDaniels instead of player favorite Rich Bisaccia, Davis made the unexpected decision to send the Raiders to the playoffs.

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Pierce had the players’ support from the beginning, just like Bisaccia did, but it remained to be seen if that would persuade Davis to hire him. Thus, all of the players—including standout defensive end Maxx Crosby—kept up the pressure. This week, he stated that “nothing is off the table” in terms of his options if Pierce is not hired on his podcast, “The Rush with Maxx Crosby.”

On his podcast, Crosby stated, “AP doesn’t have a lot of experience as a head coach, but the reality is he’s come in and helped transform the culture.” He has improved our team’s performance overall and helped us win games. He has also elevated our defense to a new level. We need only a few more components to be competitive. That’s how we all feel. We believe that we ought to be participating in the playoffs this next weekend.

Pierce also gained the support of many fans. As the clock ran out in the season-ending 27-14 victory over the Denver Broncos, the fans erupted in cheers, “AP!”

Pierce will be tasked with giving a once-iconic team that has missed the playoffs 19 times out of the previous 21 seasons its championship history, which includes three Vince Lombardi trophies.

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Davis was not allowed to hire Pierce prior to following the procedures set down by the NFL. To meet the Rooney rule, Davis needed to conduct in-person interviews with a minimum of two external minority and/or female candidates. That was what he did.

Leslie Frazier, a former defensive coordinator for Buffalo, was interviewed by the Raiders. According to ESPN, the team also spoke with Kris Richard, a former co-defensive coordinator for the New Orleans Saints.

This hiring cycle, Pierce is the second black coach to land a head position. Jerod Mayo was elevated by the New England Patriots to take Belichick’s spot.

The only NFL team with a black president, general manager, and coach is the Raiders. However, Champ Kelly has an interim general manager (although he may eventually be hired on a full-time basis). Although Kelly has long been seen as a strong contender for the job, there are concerns about the fact that his hiring wasn’t disclosed concurrently with Pierce’s.

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According to The Athletic, Davis is considering appointing a director of football operations, so it’s plausible that Kelly is still part of the front office reorganization.

Pierce will have to make choices about his staff, and it’s likely that he will examine his offensive closely. When Mick Lombardi was fired in the middle of the season, Bo Hardegree took over as the offensive coordinator in the interim. However, it’s possible—possibly even likely—that Pierce leaves the team to take over as offensive coordinator.

Beyond that, Pierce will have to collaborate with the next general manager on matters pertaining to personnel, such as quarterbacking decisions. Aidan O’Connell, a rookie, was started by Pierce. Even though he became better as the season went on, there were still questions about whether the team needed a franchise quarterback. The top quarterbacks will probably be selected by the time the Raiders select, as they have the 13th pick in this year’s draft.

Josh Jacobs, the running back, will also need to have his future decided. Following his 2022 NFL rush record-setting season, Jacobs and the Raiders’ application for the franchise tag sparked a contract disagreement. After training camp, the two parties decided on a one-year contract. This season, Jacob’s output fell from 1,653 yards to 805 yards, and he missed the last month due to a quadriceps ailment.