Graney: New Raiders duo needs to prove Davis got it right

He walked outside to an empty practice field — just as he had when an interim tag was slapped onto his resume Halloween night — and stood in the darkness. It was quiet. He looked upward. He took in the moment, surreal as it was.

Antonio Pierce had just been informed he was head coach of the Raiders.

“Just kind of looking up there and saying, ‘Wow,’ ” Pierce said. “You remember what I said when I first got in front of you. I said, ‘My worst day is going to be my first day.’ Well, this is my first day. This is going to be my best day and I’m going to celebrate it and I’m going to enjoy it.”

Now, comes the hardest and yet most significant part. Winning.

Attempting to go from the darkness of an empty field and so many losing seasons into the bright light of success.

It’s not the easiest of moves.

Happy and positive

Pierce and new general manager Tom Telesco were introduced Wednesday afternoon and things went as you might expect. Everyone was happy. Everyone was positive. Everyone was on the same page.

But what you say off the field right now and what you do on it from September to January are about as different as the personalities of Pierce and Josh McDaniels.

How the new coach and general manager work alongside one another will go a few country miles in determining at what level the Raiders win.

Telesco as general manager of the Chargers never won a division in 11 seasons. The organization won just two playoff games during his tenure.

The Raiders have been even more inept, making just two playoff appearances since 2002.

Translation: This is a duo with much to prove.

“Our vision is clear.” Pierce said. “Win the division. Get into the playoffs and hoist that Lombardi Trophy. That’s not a promise. That’s a vision.

“It’s not going to be easy. It’s not going to be overnight. I’m not promising anything, along with Tom, but I know this: We’re going to exhaust every possible resource and ounce of sweat and tears and effort every night and minute and second that we have to turn this bad boy into a consistent winning organization.”

The bad boy has a long ways to go.

It’s on Telesco and Pierce to prove the hires owner Mark Davis has made to turn the franchise around are warranted. That he didn’t make a mistake on either of them.

Telesco spoke about the commitment to excellence. About doing things the Raider way. About just win, baby. About once a Raider, always a Raider. About having heard all of it, knowing all of it, seeing all of it, but finally feeling all of it when first walking into the building.

Sound bites are nice this time of year. They mean nothing when things get real.

It’s his charge to build a roster capable of competing within the division. One that has been looking up at Kansas City for some time now.

Telesco has a lot of learning to do. He has known the Raiders as an opponent. Now, he’ll learn about them from the inside.

Having a plan

“Our relationship, like anything, will have its ups and downs,” Pierce said. “We have to be adults and grown men about it. We’ve got to hash it out. We’ve got to understand our roles, check our egos at the door. … Understand we have a plan, be hand and hand with it.

“Obviously, if he goes down, I go down. That’s the nature of the beast. We get it. But that’s not the plan. Our plan is to win.”

It’s the only acceptable one.

It’s the only one that matters.

He walked outside to an empty practice field and stood in the darkness.

Now, Antonio Pierce and Tom Telesco better soon see the light.

Ed Graney, a Sigma Delta Chi Award winner for sports column writing, can be reached at egraney@reviewjournal.com. He can be heard on “The Press Box,” ESPN Radio 100.9 FM and 1100 AM, from 7 to 10 a.m. Monday through Friday. Follow @edgraney on X.