Raiders coach still awaiting clarity on job status for 2025

The Raiders’ abysmal season ended Sunday with a loss to the Chargers, but Antonio Pierce reported to work as normal Monday.

Or, as normal as can be for an NFL coach who just completed a 4-13 season and was in limbo regarding his employment with the franchise.

Pierce, speaking at his season-ending news conference Monday morning, said he assumed he still had a job.

“I haven’t been told anything different,” he said.

That could change depending on what happens when he eventually meets with Raiders owner Mark Davis and general manager Tom Telesco. But until then, Pierce is conducting business as usual while tuning out the rampant speculation about his future.

“It’s only coming from the outside. It’s not inside the building,” he said. “So, to me, there’s nothing to clean up until I hear from inside the building.”

Davis’ car was spotted at the Raiders’ practice facility, but he did not respond to a text message seeking comment on Pierce.

Quarterback regrets

As Pierce contemplates his first full season as coach, he does so with misgivings about how he handled certain things. Specifically, the decision to start quarterback Gardner Minshew over Aidan O’Connell at the beginning of the season.

Pierce, Telesco and then-offensive coordinator Luke Getsy made the call to start Minshew, who was signed to a two-year, $25 million contract in March, after neither distinguished himself as the clear-cut starter during training camp

Pierce made it clear Monday that his preference was O’Connell, who led the Raiders to a 5-4 record during Pierce’s time as interim coach in 2023.

“Yes,” Pierce said when asked if he would have made a different decision.

Pierce said it’s a “lesson learned” and a reminder that he needs to follow his instincts more rather than defer to others on certain decisions. He said he got away from that during his first full season and is determined to rely on his conviction more, assuming he returns as coach.

“I need to go with my gut,” Pierce said. “I was better at that last year.”

Scouting the college QBs

Pierce was clear last year that the Raiders needed to upgrade at quarterback, ideally by finding their long-term starter through the NFL draft.

But two late-season wins took them out of the running for one of the top three prospects — USC’s Caleb Williams, LSU’s Jayden Daniels and North Carolina’s Drake Maye. Six quarterbacks had been drafted when the Raiders picked at No. 13.

The Raiders have the No. 6 pick this year, leaving them in a better position to trade up for Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders or Miami’s Cam Ward, considered the top two quarterbacks in the draft, if they want to take a QB in the first round.

Pierce made it clear he would like more of a say on that position during the draft process.

“Obviously, we’ll go through the evaluation with them on the grass,” he said. “But I hope to have a bigger and more impact in the quarterback room.”

Pierce said his time as an assistant coach at Arizona State from 2018 to 2021 gives him insight into this year’s class.

“I’m still familiar with these quarterbacks,” he said. “I got a good pulse and beat on a few of these guys, their personalities and who they are. And they can’t really fool me in the interviews.”

Contact Vincent Bonsignore at vbonsignore@reviewjournal.com. Follow @VinnyBonsignore on X.