Raiders Coach Antonio Pierce Reflects on Journey at Media Day

Las Vegas Raiders coach Antonio Pierce's Media Day was much different this time around.

Jan 7, 2024; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Las Vegas Raiders interim head coach Antonio Pierce cheers with fans after the Raiders defeated the Denver Broncos 27-14 at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports / Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

The long-awaited Antonio Pierce era is inching ever so close for the Las Vegas Raiders. 

In just three months, Pierce will coach his first game as the full-time head coach of the Silver and Black. After an impressive interim tenure that saw him pull upsets, break records, and captivate fans and players, Pierce more than earned the job. 

Pierce joked at Monday's Media Day with JT the Brick, Raiders legend Eric Allen and Your Boy Q that he almost didn’t attend last year’s event. He reflected on his journey of becoming the head coach on Monday’s four-hour "Media Day Live Raiders Roundtable" on the team’s YouTube channel. 

“It’s been a great opportunity," Pierce said. “Fun, exciting, looking forward. Looking forward to training camp, looking forward to getting all the guys in the pads bonding, building what we’ve been doing over the last several months in the offseason program, and just let it all fly; let it all lay out when we get out on that grass.”

Allen asked Pierce how he felt his coaching style and culture-building methods had progressed over time and if it has become easier to coach the way he coaches.

According to Pierce, it has.

“When your top players, when your best players believe, it’s easy for everybody else to fall in line,” he said. “I think for me, you deliver the message; you don’t harp on it; you empower your coaches, your coordinators, and then your players to own it. I think the cool thing about this whole situation is, ‘Okay, AP, I have the vision, I have the plan.’ But there’s no plan, no vision without people.”

Pierce fully believes that the organization's culture is in good hands.

“We have the right people in place, both with our staff, our players, the guys that we drafted, guys we brought in through free agency; they understand what the Raider Way is," he said. "That was our number one conversation: Do you get the culture that we’re setting and that we’re building? And the best part about it is it’s not AP setting the culture. It’s the players, it’s the building, it’s everybody doing it. It’s collective, and that’s what you’re seeing.”

There’s a palpable buzz around the Raiders this offseason. It’s now up to Pierce to put it all together and lead the team back to the postseason. 

You can watch the full Media Day stream here.

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