Crosby on What Makes Pierce a Special Coach

Las Vegas Raiders Interim Coach Antonio Pierce has done a tremendous job turning around the team, on and off the field.

The Raiders are 4-3 since Pierce took over for Josh McDaniels, and are coming off two impressive victories over AFC West opponents.

The improved play on the field on both sides of the ball and the morale in the locker room have prompted multiple voices from within the organization and across the NFL to support removing the interim tag from Pierce’s title.

One of the voices within the organization in support of Pierce is star defensive end Maxx Crosby, who spoke about what has made Pierce a great coach over the last seven weeks.

“There are only 32 head coaching jobs in the NFL,” Crosby said. “That’s for a special, special group of coaches. You can know all the X’s and O’s, you can know exactly what’s going on, you can be the most brilliant mind, but if you can’t lead men, then you’re not going to be able to lead a group of 53 grown men to where you’re trying to go. Every single head coach in this league right now had to earn that spot, and realistically, it’s a cycle.

“Every single year, there’s about half the coaches who are on the hot seat. It’s super hard to maintain that job and do it at a high level for a long time, but what I feel like separates the great ones from the guys who are recycled and kind of go through that process, are just being leaders of men. That’s something that AP has, and that’s something you can’t measure. I’m not a prediction guy, I’m a manifestation guy, but I see him being the next Mike Tomlin type of guy.

“He doesn’t necessarily have to be calling the defensive plays, but he has influence. He doesn’t necessarily have to be calling the offensive plays, but he has influence. But, he knows how to gravitate everybody to one common goal. That’s something that’s hard to find. I’m not trying to say he’s Mike Tomlin. Obviously, AP is his own guy and own man, but AP has a ton of potential, and it’s been an honor having him as our head coach for the last seven games.”

The entire podcast episode can be found here.

The Silver and Black continue the season on New Year's Eve versus the Indianapolis Colts in Indianapolis. Don't miss it on Sunday, December 31, at 1 p.m. EST/10 a.m. PST.

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