LAS VEGAS -- Following the Las Vegas Raiders' season-ending 27-14 defeat of the Denver Broncos on Sunday, owner Mark Davis told ESPN he is "really excited" about the job Antonio Pierce did in leading the team to a 5-4 finish after he took over as interim head coach.
But Davis also noted he has no time frame in naming a full-time coach and acknowledged he must set up interviews, at least two of which must be with external minority candidates to comply with the Rooney Rule.
"Yeah, I think the team really played well down the stretch, and I think going 4-2 in the division is really a positive for us," Davis said. "Obviously, that's what we have to take care of first is the division. And we went into Kansas City, in a tough game, and beat them [20-14 on Christmas Day], and we took care of Denver here at home to end the season."
At 8-9, the Raiders finished in second place in the AFC West, two games better than last season, after splitting with the division-champion Chiefs and Los Angeles Chargers and sweeping the Broncos. Pierce, meanwhile, went 3-1 in the division, and the Raiders were in every game they played, finishing with impressive wins against the New York Giants (30-6), Chargers (63-21), Chiefs (20-14) and Broncos (27-14), along with quizzical losses to the Minnesota Vikings (3-0) and Indianapolis Colts (23-20) that kept them out of the playoffs for the 19th time in 21 seasons.
When Davis first elevated Pierce from linebackers coach to interim coach following the Halloween night firing of Josh McDaniels, he told ESPN he did not want Pierce to necessarily "coach," so much as "lead" and "delegate."
Asked Sunday if he did that, Davis said: "There's no question about it. You tell me."
Told there was a certain vintage Los Angeles Raiders feeling in the postgame locker room Sunday, given Pierce's affinity for the team when it played there, and the fact he grew up in nearby Compton, Davis nodded.
"Raiders days," he said.
Indeed, upon entering the locker room filled with victory cigar smoke and the musical stylings of Chief Keef bouncing off the walls, Pro Football Hall of Famers Charles Woodson, Mike Haynes, Richard Seymour, Marcus Allen, Ted Hendricks and Jim Otto, and two-time Super Bowl champion QB Jim Plunkett took in the scene and celebrated with the current players.
"They really seemed to respond to him," Plunkett said of the players and Pierce. "Which is a good thing."
Woodson, flicking the ashes off his stogie, agreed.
"Whatever he said when he came in, the guys picked up on it. Immediately," he said.
"It feels good, man. It feels familiar. It feels like old-school Raiders, when I was here and Darrell Russell and Grady Jackson and James Trapp and the guys that I came into the NFL with, man. This kind of vibe feels like it because, when I came in, we were trying to grow it. We were 8-8 and 8-8 and then, all of a sudden, we were able to get some pieces in here, like grabbing William Thomas and free agents."
The Raiders responded with a 12-4 record and an AFC title game appearance in Woodson's third NFL season in 2000.
"And so, this atmosphere in here tonight with these guys, it feels like, my guys," Woodson said.
Three-time Pro Bowl edge rusher Maxx Crosby, who had a sack Sunday to finish the season with a career-high 14.5, noticed the VIPs in the locker room as well, and credited Pierce for their presence.
"It's legendary," he said. "When you have the right culture, a guy like A.P. that embraces the history of the Raiders, it's special. ... A ton of legends [visit] consistently because the amount of respect they have for him. So, it makes you, as a player, want to go out there and show who you are. You know what I mean? You want to be at that level one day.
"For me, that's what I've talked about many times -- I'm going to be a gold jacket guy. For me, every single time I step out on the field, it's in the back of my head -- I want to be the best, baddest dude on the field. At all times. So when you have dudes like that walking around the building every single day, you love it and that's what you want."
As the clock counted down against the Broncos, the crowd began chanting "A-P." Pierce responded by pumping a fist at them. Woodson noticed the salute and commended Pierce for it.
"He coaches the way he played linebacker. You've got to be somewhat tough anyway, but he played for tough teams, played for a championship team," Woodson said of Pierce. "He understands Raider football, he understands that toughness that has always been preached around here, and the day he took over, you noticed it immediately. That next game, it was visible to all."
Before being named interim coach, Pierce's lone head-coaching experience was at the high school level, at California power Long Beach Poly from 2014 to 2017. Since then, he worked as an assistant at Arizona State and joined McDaniels' staff in 2022.
He was asked about further imparting his vision on the Raiders moving forward, should he be tabbed as head coach.
"You just keep growing, I mean, you talk about culture, you talk about foundation, you talk about your DNA, talk about what you want it to look like, your structure, your coaches, your players, having your identity," he said. "To me, our players and our coaches will be a reflection of me and I'll go forward as we move into this bad boy. But there's a lot of things that I can still grow from.
"This is a great experience, great kickstart. I think we do have a solid foundation that we've built so far, but there's more to go and, no excuse, but it is difficult to do in the middle of the season and to get guys to buy in and really believe that that's how you're going to win and that's the way to win. [If] we have time to do presentations, put that in OTAs, minicamps, training camp, get that bonding, that chemistry together, I think it'll be a pretty thing to watch."
Michigan football coach Jim Harbaugh's name also will be bandied about for the position in the coming days. But as Davis said, first things first.
"I have to go through the process of interviews, setting up interviews and then letting you know what we're doing," Davis said.
And any time frame?
"Nope, Probably before next season," Davis said jokingly.