Graney: What are Raiders better at since coaching change to Pierce? Nothing
CINCINNATI — Last Halloween, almost exactly one year ago, Raiders owner Mark Davis fired coach Josh McDaniels.
Antonio Pierce was promoted to interim coach before earning the job full-time in January.
One year later, what are the Raiders better at now as opposed to then?
Nothing.
“Well,” Pierce said Sunday, “the record tells you it’s (not any better).”
Pierce was speaking after the Raiders’ latest debacle. They were shellacked 41-24 by the Bengals at Paycor Stadium for their fifth straight loss. The Raiders are 2-7 entering their bye week and going nowhere.
Race for first
They’re not any better on offense. There is no run game to speak of, and their quarterbacks have been inconsistent.
They’re certainly not better on defense. They showed promise on that side of the ball after Pierce took over last season, but that’s disappeared.
The Raiders are a bad team in a serious race for first place. Or last. It depends on how you look at things.
The Raiders — barring an unforeseen turnaround — will be in play for a high draft pick in April. That’s the good news. At least it should be considered good news at this point.
Players and coaches never think about tanking. It’s too hard a game. There is too much pride involved. This is their livelihood. It’s not part of their DNA to worry about where the team will pick in the first round.
But the Raiders right now are tied for the fewest wins in the NFL. They need a lot of help at a lot of spots. They need that high pick.
They need so many things to have a chance at being competitive. They need new starters at spots all over both sides of the ball. This isn’t a one-draft fix. General manager Tom Telesco isn’t looking at an overnight turnaround. You saw that again Sunday.
“Today wasn’t a good day at the office,” Pierce said. “It wasn’t a good enough effort, obviously, and the score will tell you that. We have to reset. It’s a group effort. It’s a team effort. We all have to find a way to get better. … We can all do a much better job.”
Pierce needs to use this bye week wisely. He needs to break down every facet of his team, beginning with the coaching staff. He needs to determine if the offense would improve with someone other than offensive coordinator Luke Getsy calling plays.
Things have hardly been a success under Getsy, but the team’s results aren’t all his fault. The Raiders have one of the NFL’s poorest quarterback rooms. Their offensive line, while injured in spots, hasn’t been consistent at all. Their skill players outside of rookie tight end Brock Bowers aren’t difference makers.
Defensive coordinator Patrick Graham’s unit hasn’t been a fearsome one, either.
Control the controllable
The Raiders can’t fix all of their issues in one week. That would be impossible. But they can try and make decisions that might improve things some over the next eight games. Because what’s happening now isn’t working. At all.
“Everybody’s got to look in the mirror,” defensive end Maxx Crosby said. “Everyone has to improve. It starts with me.”
The Raiders made a coaching change a year ago.
They aren’t any better now than they were then. At anything.
Their record shows it. They’re in a race to first. Or last.
Depends on how you look at things.
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.
