Antonio Pierce has been interim head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders since the end of October; He is finalising a deal to make the job permanent; It is a decision that will be popular with both players and fans
HENDERSON, Nev. (AP) — Mark Davis could’ve waited to see if he could lure someone from an unusually deep roster of coaches on the open market to the Las Vegas Raiders.
And even though Antonio Pierce’s resume was relatively thin, the Raiders owner determined he had done enough since becoming the interim coach on Halloween night to get the job full time.
The Raiders announced Friday the hiring of Pierce as their new coach, crossing out the word “interim” in a post on X, the social platform formerly known as Twitter. He’s the fourth interim coach the Raiders have elevated, joining Art Shell, Tom Cable and Marty Feldman.
Pierce, 45, took over as interim coach after Josh McDaniels was fired. The Raiders went 5-4 under his watch and the team went 8-9 overall.
“Can’t think of anyone more deserving,” Las Vegas tackle Jermaine Eluemunor posted on X. “The Raider way is the only way that needs to be in Vegas.”
That’s despite Bill Belichick, Mike Vrabel and Pete Carroll being available, along with Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh taking a few NFL interviews after leading the Wolverines to the college national championship
