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Raiders’ Antonio Pierce Fought Back Tears in Emotional Interview After Beating Chiefs

The coach wore his emotions on his sleeve after a big win.

Tom Dierberger

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Las Vegas Raiders interim coach Antonio Pierce had a Christmas Day to remember. 

Behind two defensive touchdowns and 145 rushing yards from running back Zamir White, Las Vegas defeated the rival Kansas City Chiefs 20–14 at Arrowhead Stadium.

Pierce wore his emotions on his sleeve after the win.

“Hell of a job by those guys, our staff, [defensive coordinator] Patrick Graham ... it’s tough,” Pierce said to CBS sideline reporter Tracy Wolfson before pausing as tears filled his eyes.

The Raiders’ victory was their first win over the Chiefs since 2020, and just their second since Patrick Mahomes took over as Kansas City’s starting quarterback in 2018.

“This is what we wanted,” Pierce said. “We said enough is enough. ... It was going to take all 60 minutes and it did. Hell of a job by our offense to finish it.”

Pierce is emerging as a favorite to be hired as the Raiders’ full-time head coach entering next season. Since taking the reins in November after Las Vegas fired Josh McDaniels, Pierce has led the Raiders to a 4–3 record, including back-to-back dominant wins over the Los Angeles Chargers and Chiefs.

At 7–8, the Raiders are still on the outside looking in at the AFC playoff picture and have a 12% chance to make the postseason (per NFL.com). 

But the way Pierce has Las Vegas playing, a miraculous run to the playoffs isn’t out of the question.

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Tom Dierberger
TOM DIERBERGER

Tom Dierberger is a staff writer and editor on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He joined SI in November 2023 after stints at FOX Sports, Bally Sports and NBC Sports. Dierberger has a bachelor's in communication from St. John's University. In his spare time, he can be seen throwing out his arm while playing fetch with his dog, Walter B. Boy.

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