Raiders Chiefs Score Week 13: Antonio Pierce just can’t lead this team

Where did interim coach Antonio Pierce go?

Full-time head coach Antonio Pierce looks nothing like this guy.

The look on Pierce’s face at the end of that game was one of shock and disbelief.

Pierce won the game by a full tie as he led the 2023 Raiders to a Christmas Day victory at Arrowhead Stadium.

An otherwise miserable 2024 season could have had a nice climax with a second straight win against the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead, but terrible late decisions by Pierce, who is 7-14 as the Raiders’ head coach, led to miscommunication between the rookies Center Jackson Powers-Johnson and quarterback Aidan O’Connell committed a stunning, game-winning fumble just as Las Vegas was preparing for a makeable game-winning field goal that ultimately fell short 19-17 loss for the Raiders, who fell to 2-10 and have lost eight straight games.

With just over two minutes left, Pierce called a timeout before deciding to let Carlson attempt a long field goal, which he missed. Then, in the final seconds, the Raiders rush the ball on first down, only to try to throw the ball away on the fateful final play, but it took too long.

Sure, the Raiders are playing hard and yes, they’re short-handed, but Pierce and his staff continue to contribute to the losses and he doesn’t look anywhere near head coach, team and fan base.

As we approach December football and the final five games of the season, it’s fair to wonder whether Pierce will be finished in Las Vegas, something that seemed unimaginable when he was hired.

Here are some of their takeaways from the Raiders’ 19-17 loss on Friday:

Center, quarterback stands up:

Both O’Connell and Powers-Johnson took the blame for the botched snap. It was an ugly way to lose and will be remembered for a long time, but both will be better for it.

This is what the Chiefs do:

The Chiefs dropped passes. They dropped interceptions. They couldn’t get crucial first downs (this game could have been over in about two minutes if the Chiefs had converted on third and second base). They fell to the ground on a long touchdown. Burt in the end they won the game and secured another spot in the playoffs. That’s what they do.

O’Connell impressed:

O’Connell deserves a lot of credit for playing a short week and a few days of practice with a new offensive coordinator after missing four games with a broken thumb. He completed 23 of 35 pass attempts for 340 yards with two long touchdown passes and was good on the final drive. He has five games to make his case for 2025.

Chaisson has a field day:

Defensive end K’Lavon Chaisson had 2.5 of Patrick Mahomes’ five sacks by the Raider. He came into the game with 1.5 sacks. He felt it on Friday.

Abdullah starts again, but McCormick shines:

With Zamir White and Alexander Mattison both out for the second consecutive game, Ameer Abdullah started again. But in his second game of NFL carries, Sincere McCormick showed he deserves big carries down the stretch. He had 64 yards on 12 carries Friday. and he had 97 yards in the last two games.

More Brock:
Raiders rookie tight end Brock Bowers made a one-handed catch at the Chiefs’ 25-yard line despite being stymied in the third quarter, surpassing the 800-yard receiving mark. He joined Mike Ditka as the only rookie tight ends to do this in his first 12 games. He had 10 catches for 140 yards and showed a national audience that he is a legitimate candidate for rookie of the year. He has 84 receptions and is just three yards away from setting the rookie reception record.

More Maxx:

The Raiders’ star defensive player Maxx Crosby had his 15th tackle for a loss of the season. He is the only player in the league to have 15 or more tackles for loss in the last three seasons. He also had two tackles for loss and made multiple such plays 27 times in his career.

The crazy streak continues:
The Chiefs led 13-3 in the third quarter. The Raiders were down by double digits in all twelve games this season.

Tough time for Carlson:

Carlson was so good and he has great range. But on Friday he missed field goal attempts of 56, 55 and 58 yards. It was the first time in his career that he made three field goals in a game. However, they were long specimens. Still, it’s Carlson. They expect him to get them all under control.

Jackson-Powers back in focus:

It appears as though Andre James, who signed a three-year, $24 million contract extension in March, is now a backup and Powers-Johnson is the set starter at center for now and the future. He played guard before James was injured four weeks ago. But James is healthy. Jordan Meredith has taken Powers-Johnson’s spot at guard.

Killer Kelce:

In the first quarter, renowned Raider hitter and Kansas City tight end Travis Kelce became the all-time yards leader against the Raiders, surpassing former Kansas City tight end Tony Gonzalez. Kelce was already the receiving man against the Raiders. He had seven catches for 68 yards.

Cold game:

At kick-off it was 34 degrees and very cool. It might be the Raiders’ only cold game this season. They only have two road games left – December 8th at Tampa Bay and December 29th at New Orleans (a Dome team).