Antonio Pierce knows his Raiders’ issues; why can’t his staff remedy them?

Coach notes lack of discipline, fundamentals hurting team but players aren’t responding

The first step in fixing a problem is identifying there is one.

Antonio Pierce has done plenty of that.

Before his Las Vegas Raiders’ Week 6 matchup with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Pierce noted the team was going back to the fundamentals of football to remedy the woes the team is experiencing during one of his media sessions. This was to combat the mountainous amount of missed tackles the Silver and Black have amassed, costly turnovers, and uncharacteristic penalties the team experienced.

Despite Pierce’s braggadocios claim of a reset in practices to reboot drive, focus, and mentality leading up to the home game against the Steelers, the Raiders flopped. His players did Pierce no favors in the 32-13 loss to Pittsburgh — almost like the group didn’t even hear what the coach told the media (maybe they didn’t).

The defense still whiffed on tackles (Las Vegas has a total of 61, according to Pro Football Reference which leads the league), turnovers were again costly (two fumbles and an interception; the Raiders are minus-10 in the takeaway/turnover game with 12 turnovers and only two takeaways), and penalties killed drives while extending Steelers’ drives.

“It starts with discipline,” Pierce said in the post game press conference. “We had four penalties, but they were at critical moments. The turnover thing is embarrassing. We don’t respect the ball enough, so we don’t even deserve a chance to put ourself into position to win.”

Pierce knows what the issues are, but why can’t he and his coaching staff remedy them?

Whether they intended this to happen or not, the continued mental lapses from Raiders players reflects poorly on Pierce. The head coach goes out and says back to basics and the players can’t even execute even the minute of details. And the more Pierce talks at the podium only for his team to face plant gamedays, it looks even more dubious.

Hence why our Matt Holder put Pierce front and center as the main loser in his Week 6 recap, and why blame starts with Pierce for Las Vegas’ struggles.

For all the experience Pierce surrounded himself with on his coaching staff, the lack of fixing issues is bewildering. I’d get it if it was a neophyte staff that lacks experience and know how, but that’s the case in this instance. Pierce added Marvin Lewis as his assistant head coach and Joe Philbin as senior offensive assistant. Lewis brings with him 27 years of NFL coaching experience while Philbin has 19 years in the pros as a coach. Pierce has even relied upon the advice and mentorship of Tom Coughlin, another veteran coach, who like Lewis, brings championship experience to the table.

One would reasonably surmise, between Lewis and Philbin, one would formulate a way for Pierce and the other coaches to fix the woes that’s resulted in a 2-4 overall record through the initial six games.

One could also note Lewis and Philbin are older and can’t relate to the modern, younger NFL player.

But Pierce is the player’s coach.

Which makes it even more disconcerting: For a Raiders team that got the head coach it wanted in Pierce, this crew has folded as quickly as the Josh McDaniels-led variant of the Silver & Black.

Photo by Chris Unger/Getty Images

The lack of a bona fide starting quarterback on the roster looms large, however. Former QB1 Gardner Minshew had his moments, but turned the ball over too much and it’s now Aidan O’Connell’s turn as starter. The previous regime and the new one haven’t truly found an long-term answer at the all-important position. Perhaps that arrives in the 2025 NFL Draft or free agency?

Despite that, Pierce — unsurprisingly — hasn’t seen an ounce of quit in his Raiders.

“We’re fighting. We got an interception and there was a penalty there that took it back. Guys are battling their asses off, right? They’re battling,” the coach said earlier this week. “They’re not blinking, they’re not flinching. You hear it on the sideline. They’re like, AP, we got it. They’re telling each other they got it.”

His roster being decimated by injuries isn’t helping Pierce’s first go-around as full-time head coach. The Davante Adams situation (now resolved as the wide receiver was dealt to the New York Jets) only compounded matters. But injuries and in-season roster adjustments are the name of the game for all 32 NFL teams as it’s not a phenomena that’s relegated just to the Silver & Black. And again, Pierce has surrounded himself with plenty of experience to navigate these murky waters.

For how dire things look for the Raiders — it’s definitely Silver & Bleak with the overall record and the trio of games coming up before a bye week: at Los Angeles Rams (currently 1-4), vs. Kansas City Chiefs (5-0), at Cincinnati Bengals (2-4) — there’s ample time to turn things around.

Back-to-back embarrassing efforts the last two weeks should (stressing should) mean a more competitive and fiery effort from Las Vegas.

Coaching and player execution go hand-in-hand and thus far, the Raiders have been face palming instead of having sound tutelage and production. That’s something Pierce harped on when asked about the team’s performances not being up to snuff on Sundays.

“No, I think it’s just production. Guys got to produce. We still got 11 guys out there. Still got some good football players,” Pierce noted. “Now, yesterday, we were down a little bit with Jakobi (Myers). That one hurt, but I thought Brock (Bowers) stepped up, and he’s been a bright spot for us each and every week. And we just need some of these other core guys. Look, some of these guys, to their credit, was just on the practice squad and getting them opportunities and you got to make the most of it. You always want those opportunities. We got to be detailed. And when they come, you make the most of them.”

The Raiders are not without talent. The rookie class from the 2024 NFL Draft looks promising — not just Bowers, as our Bill Williamson noted in his rookie watch piece. There’s also defensive centerpiece Maxx Crosby, middle linebacker Robert Spillane, and defensive tackle Christian Wilkins (although he’s on injured reserve with a foot injury).

Long before the season began, I predicted the Raiders would be 2-6 overall after the initial matchup with the Chiefs. At 2-4, that prediction is looking likely. While I may have prognosticated only two victories, I didn’t anticipate Las Vegas to look this listless — especially in losses to: the Carolina Panthers (36-22 final score), Denver Broncs (34-18) and Steelers (32-13).

Pierce said his team will be fine. Owner Mark Davis told the media his Raiders will be OK at the NFL Fall League Meeting (in which Tom Brady’s 5 percent stake in the team was approve unanimously).

“He’s young as a head coach. He’s learning how to be a head coach,” Davis told reporters. “He’s surrounded himself with a lot of good people. He’s just got to grow into the job. It’s his first year, really. What he did last year was phenomenal.”

Davis also expressed confidence in the paring of Pierce and general manager Tom Telesco.

“They have a vision and I think they’re attacking it,” Davis said. “It’s not easy to do overnight.”

We’ll find out eventually if the Raiders issues of habitually making the same mistakes over and over again are the coaching staff or the players.

Thus, these slow-burn growing pains will eventually lead to something better.

Right?