4 head coaches Raiders would be wrong to hire over Antonio Pierce

The likable interim vs. the allure of the outside candidate you don't really know. Along with the backup quarterback, nobody is more beloved on a football team than the interim head coach. Sometimes it works out well for the interim. He may be the perfect candidate in-house to promote from within. However, things are not as good as they may appear on the surface. It is such a tricky proposition.

Although the Carolina Panthers and the Los Angeles Chargers are being led by interim coaches as well, the one that is most likely to stick around with his new team next year has to be Antonio Pierce of the Las Vegas Raiders. Owner Mark Davis had a good feeling about this guy when he appointed him in the wake of Josh McDaniels and Dave Ziegler's terminations from much earlier in the season.

Fresh off a dominant win over the arch rival Kansas City Chiefs on Christmas Day at Arrowhead, you could make a strong argument that Pierce should be the Raiders' guy full-time for next season. Remember, the last time the Silver and Black thought they were too good for the interim, they let Rich Bisaccia walk to the Green Bay Packers after a rare playoff appearance in favor of ... Josh McDaniels...

Davis can do whatever he wants, but he cannot hire one of these four coaches over Pierce in-house.

4 Raiders head-coaching candidates to avoid hiring over Antonio Pierce

4. Frank Smith may not bring with him the special sauce of Mike McDaniel

In time, I think Miami Dolphins offensive coordinator Frank Smith could be a fantastic head coach in the NFL. This is his first time getting on the coaching carousel. He will get interview opportunities based on the tremendous success the playoff-bound Dolphins are having this season. However, he may be benefiting from Mike McDaniel's brilliance a bit more than we would honestly like to see.

Smith would be the first branch of McDaniel's coaching tree. He will probably be a good one. He is proficient in understanding a ground-centric attack, which could be the Raiders' bread and butter going forward. To me, I think he could work out well leading the Silver and Black initially, but I am skeptical about his ability to develop a young quarterback. The Raiders will need one to succeed.

If there is a team with a more seasoned quarterback, then I would have no problem in tabbing Smith to be their head coach. He could be in play to work with Justin Herbert on the Los Angeles Chargers, Smith's previous employer prior to Miami. Keep in mind that Smith used to work for the Raiders not that long ago. He was Jon Gruden's tight ends coach from 2018 to 2020, for whatever that is worth.

To me, Smith could work out wonderfully in Las Vegas, but the Gruden connection is less than ideal.