Owning a 2-8 record after their sixth-straight loss, the Raiders’ season is cooked. There will be no playoffs, and there’s little reason to believe they’ll win more than one or two more games before the campaign officially ends.
But first-year coach Antonio Pierce still has a job to do. Primarily, he has to make sure his players display professionalism and fight hard to win on game day. After Las Vegas’ latest loss to the Dolphins on Sunday, he said he hasn’t seen any quitters on his roster or anywhere else for that matter.
“What I’m seeing from our players, I don’t see anybody quitting,” Pierce told reporters on Monday. “I don’t see anybody quitting in this building; I don’t see no quit from our staff; I see everybody just trying to figure out ways and answers in a very fluid situation with injuries and everything else that’s going on with our team this year.”
As Pierce alluded to, the Raiders defense has been devastated by injuries, including on Sunday in Miami when depth in the secondary was tested and ultimately failed. When Pierce mentioned “everything else” he was likely talking about the Davante Adams trade a few weeks ago.
Regardless of what Pierce sees from his players and staff, the next few weeks will test the team’s perseverance. The Raiders will face AFC West rivals in their next two games: first against the Broncos and then against the Chiefs in a nationally televised game. Rivalry games could help Pierce motivate his squad, much as he did during his run as interim coach last year.
But if Las Vegas loses in blowout fashion down the stretch, it will be a bad look for Pierce. Even if nobody is quitting, all players and staff simply have to be better to finish this lost season on a positive note as Pierce envisions.
