For most of the second half of the Raiders' season, it's felt inevitable that Antonio Pierce would lose his job when the year ended. Las Vegas has been one of the worst teams in the league this year, and the whole "pair a new QB and coach" routine seems like the most likely option for the team this offseason.
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And then, over the last month, the Raiders started winning again. Granted, those wins were against some terrible competition, but no one ever apologizes for wins in the NFL. The Raiders' late season surge has been enough to convince some fans that Pierce should return for (technically) a second season, and on Sunday morning, ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter lended some legitimacy to the idea that Pierce has, in fact, coached his way into saving his job.
Adam Schefter thinks the Raiders won't end up firing Antonio Pierce
" and Mark Davis have been having regular conversations about the future of the organization and moving forward," Schefter said. "They haven't had a quarterback – that's not Antonio Pierce's fault. There are people on the staff, I think, that think there's going to be a change. But I don't feel like Antonio Pierce feels that way. And it's going to come down to Mark Davis. We're going to lean 'safe' knowing this could go either way. But I think Antonio Pierce feels confident in the job that he's done, and we'll see if he's back next season."
As surprising as it is to hear Schefter lean towards 'safe,' it's not like there's a whole lot of convinced reporting in this blurb. If he's hinting at the idea that there are plenty of coaches who still feel like a change is coming, I'm not all that persuaded one way or another. I'm sure Antonio Pierce does feel confident in the job that he's done; like Schefter says, that's not really what matters.
Either way, it's interesting to hear the first Insider report suggest that Pierce saved his job. And at least the Raiders are keeping things interesting?