The Las Vegas Raiders' decision to remove the interim coach tag from Antonio Pierce is looking worse by the week. Not only are the Raiders very much in consideration for the No. 1 pick, but they find themselves making very basic mistakes in primetime against their division rivals.
In the Raiders' Black Friday duel with the Kansas City Chiefs, Aidan O'Connell had a chance to tie the game on a third-down dump-off to running back Ameer Abdullah. Despite it being clear and obvious to everyone involved that Abdullah was given a terrible spot short of the marker, Pierce did not challenge the play.
On the next play, Kansas City was able to stop the Raiders and take over on downs. A drive that could have made the game 10-10 on the road was negated, all while Kansas City went up 13-3 with a field goal and later extended the lead to 16-3. This is yet another play Pierce wishes he had back.
Raiders coach Antonio Pierce misses clear challenge in Black Friday Game vs. Chiefs
Pierce isn't being given a ton to work with this season. Injuries and ineffectiveness have forced O'Connell, Gardner Minshew, and Desmond Ridder in and out of the lineup, and Vegas is pulling players from all over creation to play running back.
Even if you're a Pierce fan who believes he doesn't need to be judged on wins and losses this season, mistakes like that are not what you want to see. Sure, he may grow into a solid coach, but how many years can the Raiders burn trying to figure that out?
Pierce is likely staring down the barrel of what is a very long rebuild. With the siren songs of Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders calling Vegas' name, perhaps Pierce is in on the tank job. How else does one explain a complete lapse of coaching acumen like that?
Pierce is a good football man who will be around the game for decades, but Raiders fans shouldn't be mocked if they are frustrated with his performance as a coach. Even in a tight game against mighty Kansas City, Pierce's shortcomings are starting to pop up.