After a 3-5 start to the season and a loss on Monday Night Football to the Detroit Lions, longtime team owner Mark Davis decided that he’s had enough of the “Patriot way” for the Las Vegas Raiders, as he decided to clean house on Tuesday night.
Even though it seemed like Davis was ready to roll with head coach Josh McDaniels until the wheels fell off despite the constant criticism from the media and the avid fans of the franchise, the Raiders are moving in a different direction, with the team naming Antonio Pierce as the interim head coach for the rest of the 2023 campaign.
Along with parting ways with McDaniels and general manager Dave Ziegler on Halloween night, the team is moving forward with rookie quarterback Aidan O’Connell as their starter while veteran Jimmy Garoppolo heads to the bench for the foreseeable future.
According to interim general manager Champ Kelly via Kevin Patra of NFL.com, the team is quite fond of O’Connell and has been lobbying for him to get a shot with Garoppolo struggling.
Raiders interim GM Champ Kelly on decision to start Aidan O'Connell: "The guys are rallying behind him. They are excited to watch him get his opportunity."https://t.co/KnV0CkN8zz pic.twitter.com/ME2T2Ws74C
— Around The NFL (@AroundTheNFL) November 1, 2023
It seems as though the Raiders have taken on an entirely different attitude overnight, with Pierce already getting the team’s fanbase fired up and the team’s decision to make the switch at quarterback being a hit thus far.
O’Connell has shown flashes of brilliance during the NFL preseason and played well throughout most of the contest against the Los Angeles Chargers earlier in the season despite throwing an interception that cost them the game.
It’ll be interesting to see what kind of impact these changes will make and if it’s enough for the Raiders to turn their season around.
NEXT: Raiders Interim HC Gets Honest On Facing Former Team This Sunday
