Raiders gave Antonio Pierce the gift of an extra day as head coach: Best memes and tweets
Heading into Black Monday, it seemed like Antonio Pierce was as good as gone as head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders. Hiring Pierce in the first place was a questionable decision given his total lack of head coaching experience, so when the Raiders went 4-13 this season — with Pierce looking totally overwhelmed by the responsibilities that come with the top job — it felt like the solution was obvious: Admit your mistake and cut bait as soon as possible.
Of course, this is the Raiders we're talking about; "obvious" is not a word in the vocabulary. And sure enough, come Monday, Pierce was allowed to take to the podium for his year-end press conference, sounding a whole lot like a guy who'd be getting a second year at the helm.
Raiders HC Antonio Pierce on whether he expects to remain the team’s head coach: “I haven’t been told anything different.”
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 6, 2025
The coaching carousel cranked up, with no indication that Mark Davis had any interesting in making a move. But apparently 24 hours made all the difference, because while Pierce had done enough to remain the head coach on Monday, by Tuesday afternoon Davis had decided to fire him after all.
Another change in Las Vegas: Raiders fired head coach Antonio Pierce, per source.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 7, 2025
Raiders now have gone from Jon Gruden, who resigned in 2021, to Josh McDaniels, who was fired in 2023, to firing Pierce in 2025. pic.twitter.com/qoYaOyV4Us
The franchise has given us some awfully stiff competition over the years, but this might be the single most Raiders thing to have ever Raidered. Davis had all season to evaluate Pierce in his first year on the job and decide whether he was the right guy to lead the team or not. And at the end of all that, it seemed like he'd settled on "yes"; after all, what could waiting a day possibly do?
Raiders fire head coach Antonio Pierce in the most Raiders way imaginable
Maybe he was just busy on Monday. Maybe he heard some of the stuff Pierce had to say at his press conference and thought better of it at the last minute. Whatever the case, it sure doesn't bode well for Vegas moving forward — and the internet had a field day.
Antonio Pierce live from Raiders HQpic.twitter.com/oiLK2Kkw5F
— RaiderRamble.com™ (@TheRaiderRamble) January 7, 2025
raiders extend their lead to 14 for most head coaches this millennium (and that's without counting jon gruden twice)
— Austin Gayle (@austingayle_) January 7, 2025
mark davis has now hired/fired dennis allen, jack del rio, jon gruden, josh mcdaniels, and antonio pierce (along with reggie mckenzie, mike mayock, and dave… https://t.co/wE2uSbijZU
One of the biggest reasons the Raiders retained Antonio Pierce was veteran players demanding that he be retained. One of the most vocal players wanting him hired last offseason is now on the Jets.
— Grant Paulsen (@granthpaulsen) January 7, 2025
Players picking the HC doesn't work very often.
The year is 2025: Tom Brady just fired Antonio Pierce as head coach of the Raiders, the Lions are the #1 seed in the NFC and Deion Sanders’ son is projected to go #1 overall in the NFL Draft pic.twitter.com/DJeqnNogiH
— Jordan Dajani (@JordanDajani) January 7, 2025
Jim Harbaugh loved Al Davis and had great respect for the Raiders franchise. Mark Davis not considering Harbaugh twice in the last three years and hiring Josh McDaniels and Antonio Pierce instead is one of the most epic screw ups, especially with Harbaugh now in the same division
— Trevor Woods (@WoodsFootball) January 7, 2025
Was Antonio Pierce a terrible choice to be an NFL head coach? Most likely, yes.
— Zach Barnett (@zach_barnett) January 7, 2025
However, did Pierce ever have a chance to succeed simply because he was the Raiders head coach? Absolutely not.
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