Raiders fans make plea to Mark Davis to retain Antonio Pierce

There might be a chance Mark Davis learns his lesson this time around. The Las Vegas Raiders owner had something special in interim head coach Rich Bisaccia two years ago. The Silver and Black made the AFC Playoffs under his guidance, a rarity for the franchise in the 21st century, in the wake of the Jon Gruden scandal. Davis opted to move on from Bisaccia and hired Josh McDaniels ahead of 2022.

Fresh off a disastrous end to the McDaniels era in Las Vegas, one that did not let him finish his second season on the job in 2023, the Raiders were dead as a doornail. Then, interim head coach Antonio Pierce made the most of his opportunity, going 5-4 in the second half of the season. The Raiders ended up in second place in the AFC West under his leadership. This guy may be the guy.

However, Davis is his late father's son. Al Davis was unpredictable, and so is Mark to some degree. Since taking over for his father, Mark Davis has routinely tried to make splashy hires to fix his franchise. Whether it be Gruden or McDaniels, it hasn't usually worked out. But with Pierce already in-house and the team and fanbase being all-in on him, it would not be shocking if Pierce was retained.

Here is Raider Nation on Sunday afternoon chanting "AP!" in hopes Pierce will stay as the head coach.

To me, there is only one coach Davis can hire over Pierce that would be justifiable. That would be Michigan Wolverines head coach Jim Harbaugh, who first got his start in coaching with the Raiders.

Las Vegas Raiders fans make their plea to see Antonio Pierce get the job

Not going to lie, this is a tough decision for Davis to make. Going with the interim full-time can keep a good thing going, but it is often short-sided. More often than not, the allure of a high floor is mistaken for what is actually a low ceiling. It is a course of action that does happen sometimes, but promoting a guy from within in college or professional sports is not the same as it is in most of the business world.

Harbaugh could return to Ann Arbor if he so chooses, but he did hire Don Yee to be his agent for a reason. He is getting paid one way or another, but going with Tom Brady's representative from his playing career suggest Harbaugh is ready to dip his toes back into the NFL. Teams like the division rival Los Angeles Chargers could be all-in on hiring their former backup quarterback in Harbaugh.

Although the Raiders stand a good chance of luring Harbaugh back to the NFL, the Chargers have something they don't, which is a proven franchise quarterback in Justin Herbert. Yes, the Raiders can draft one, but even their pick will not be as good as the Bolts'. Truthfully, I would look at maybe three candidates in Las Vegas if I were Davis. He should go with either Pierce, Harbaugh or a total wild card.

Of any interim in recent memory, Pierce stands as good of a chance as anyone of getting promoted.