Raiders rumors: Antonio Pierce apparently impressed more than just Mark Davis

The Las Vegas Raiders turned to Antonio Pierce as interim head coach when they decided to fire Josh McDaniels on Halloween night. At the time, nobody really knew what to expect from Pierce, who had no head coaching experience, and was the team's current linebacker coach.

Pierce took the lead for the Raiders and never looked back, leading the team to a 5-4 record down the stretch, and nearly pulled off an AFC West title in the process. Las Vegas would end up being eliminated in Week 17, but a win against the Denver Broncos in Week 18 ended their season on a high note, and helped Pierce's cause in terms of being named full-time head coach.

Since then, rumors have swirled that the Raiders could be in play for Jim Harbaugh, who just led the Michigan Wolverines to a national title. While that would be a hard name to turn down if he wanted the job, Pierce did everything he could to win the permanent role for the Raiders, and he also turned some other heads in the process.

Raiders Antonio Pierce suddenly a hot commodity as head coach

Team Owner Mark Davis has a huge decision on his hands when it comes to both general manager and head coach, and Pierce is firmly in the mix to lead the way in 2024 once again. He won over the locker room and the fan base with his coaching style, and in the end, the Raiders were playing their best football down the stretch.

While Pierce to the Raiders seemed likely, Davis is not the only one who was apparently impressed with his job leading the team. According to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network, the Raiders won't be the only team talking to Pierce about a head coaching vacancy.

Davis made a mistake by not bringing back interim head coach Rich Bisaccia after the 2021 NFL season, and knowing that he likes to make a big splash, he could decide to move on from Pierce as well. For all those Raiders fans who think the team is the only option for him, they may want to think again, as he proved to be a leader of men in his nine-game stint at the helm, and others have noticed.

Pierce has repeatedly stated he is a Raider, and all signs point to him wanting to stay as the head coach of the Silver and Black. However, with other teams throwing their hats in the ring, this could get interesting.