Davante Adams and the Las Vegas Raiders are set to close up shop on a second consecutive non-playoff season. Despite playing pretty good ball under interim head coach Antonio Pierce, Vegas was too far behind the eight-ball to dig itself out following the firing of Josh McDaniels.
Most of the talk in Southern Nevada has surrounded Pierce and whether owner Mark Davis will opt to retain him full-time.
Adams touched on this in talking with reporters on Wednesday. He made his feelings known on the topic while providing some insight into how the Raiders’ locker room as a whole feels.
“Obviously, who I wanted. That’s my vote. That’s basically how the whole locker room feels. He (Pierce) kind of embodies what it means to be a Raider,” Adams told reporters.
The Raiders are 4-4 since Pierce replaced McDaniels on the sideline. That included a huge road win over the Kansas City Chiefs on Christmas Day.
Despite this, rumors surrounding the Raiders indicate that Davis is going to go big-game hunting for a new head coach once the season comes to a conclusion in the matter of days. Michigan’s Jim Harbaugh has been among those most bandied about. He began his professional coaching career with the Raiders back in 2002.
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That’s the biggest question here. Davis drew criticism following the 2021 season when he opted to hire the aforementioned McDaniels instead of giving then-interim head coach Rich Bisaccia the full-time gig. Bisaccia led Vegas to a surprise playoff appearance after Jon Gruden had to resign in disgrace.
Obviously, it did not work out with McDaniels. He was given his walking papers after just 25 games as the Raiders’ head coach.
Davis should be listening to those in the locker room when making a decision of this ilk. By all accounts, Pierce has won over the players big time. We’re talking about a change in the on-field product while the culture has improved leaps and bounds.
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Pierce has made it clear that he believes he deserves the full-time gig.
“My resume is on the grass. What do you want? I can put up a fancy presentation, I’ve seen that before. I can put up stats, I can put up my resume, but the best thing that happened for me was an opportunity,” Pierce told reporters ahead of Week 17.
This also isn’t the first time that Adams has spoke out in favor of Pierce returning for the 2024 season.
“I’m definitely rooting for him. I love the guy, I love his mentality, his passion for the game is undeniable. His evolution. He’s done a great job,” Adams said if Pierce back in late December.
In particular, Adams was an outspoken critic of the Raiders’ previous regime. His attitude has changed a ton since Davis made the move to fire McDaniels.
What would happen if Pierce were passed up on? Would it create more drama internally in Las Vegas? It is something we must look at moving forward as the process plays out.
For now, Adams is the first of many who will likely speak out publicly in favor of the Raiders retaining Pierce on a full-time basis.