The Las Vegas Raiders needed to make changes this offseason after a four-win campaign in 2024. The first domino to fall was head coach Antonio Pierce, who was fired in January. General manager Tom Telesco was not far behind him.
In fairness to Pierce, he was dealt a tough hand. Telesco did not exactly give him the best roster to work with, as Josh Jacobs left in free agency, and the team held a quarterback battle between Gardner Minshew and Aidan O'Connell.
A handful of key injuries played a role as well, but Pierce is not exactly absolved of blame. He made several questionable decisions in crucial situations, and the team went on a 10-game losing streak last year, where they simply looked unprepared in every contest.
Antonio Pierce sends weird message to Raiders before Week 1
Pierce recently accepted a job as a gameday analyst for NFL Today on CBS Sports. Sunday marked his first day at his new gig, and unsurprisingly, he sent a fairly awkward message on national TV when the Raiders came up.
"Listen, I hope it works for the Raiders. Good luck. I'm not there, but good luck."Former head coach Antonio Pierce
"I hope it works for the Raiders. Good luck. I'm not there, but good luck."
— Mike Dixon (@MikeDixon_VST) September 7, 2025
- Antonio Pierce #RaiderNation | #LVvsNE pic.twitter.com/LJ5j7aEDW4
Based on his tone, this sounds like sour grapes coming from the team's former head coach, which is understandable. After a meteoric rise, he was made the fall man for a smattering of issues throughout the Raiders' organization. Pierce also grew up a Raiders fan, so it stung even more for him.
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But this message just felt awkward to listen to, especially because he should be doing his best to be objective. It was his first day on the job, sure, but he had experience with similar ventures in the past and should know better.
The Raiders are unquestionably in a better position now than they were this time last year. With Pete Carroll and John Spytek in charge, the team made moves to bring Geno Smith, Ashton Jeanty and Chip Kelly to town, which should pay dividends in 2025.
As for Pierce, it may hurt even worse if Las Vegas has success this season. But the fan base will quickly move on from the dark tenure that Pierce happened to be a part of, especially if he continues to make weird comments about the Raiders.