Pierce's Faith in O'Connell Paid Off in Historic Victory

There was a lot of speculation concerning Las Vegas Raiders rookie quarterback Aidan O'Connell's future as a starter leading up to the Raiders' game against the Los Angeles Chargers on Thursday night.

Only days before, O'Connell threw for just 171 yards against the Minnesota Vikings and practically gave the game away with a late interception, sealing the 3-0 final score.

But Raiders Interim Coach Antonio Pierce chose to stick with his rookie as his starter. After a 63-21 rout of the Chargers on Thursday night with a four-touchdown performance from O'Connell, it's safe to say he made the right choice.

"I never lost confidence in him," Pierce told reporters after the game. "There were a lot of questions asked throughout the week and I made it very clear, and I believe it was yesterday, that I've never wavered on anything. You asked me a question and I said: 'Yeah, I'll keep evaluating this if that’s what you want to ask me, I'll look into it.'

"But I made that decision with Aidan [O'Connell] when I first took over, and I don't think you ever go back on your gut. And Aidan is a rookie. When I was a rookie and I played, I made mistakes.

"I had ugly games and it's hard to play the position he plays, so he's going to have rough days and he had a rough day on offense last week. But you know what he did on Monday? His ass was the first one in the building.

"Know what he did yesterday? He's the last one in the building; he didn't leave. He stayed there all day until he got it right.

"The same thing today -- he didn't leave the building all day after our morning meeting. So, here's a guy, he has a great opportunity, no different than me, and he's taking advantage of it, and tonight he's on the winning side."

The Silver and Black will return to action versus their AFC West rivals, the Kansas City Chiefs, on Christmas Day at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City. Don't miss it on Monday, December 25, at 1 p.m. EST/10 a.m. PST.

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