 Pierce with theNew York Giants in 2008 | |||||||||||||||
| No. 58 | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Linebacker | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
| Born | (1978-10-26)October 26, 1978 (age 47) Long Beach, California, U.S. | ||||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 238 lb (108 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||
| High school | Paramount(Paramount, California) | ||||||||||||||
| College |
| ||||||||||||||
| NFL draft | 2001: undrafted | ||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||
Playing | |||||||||||||||
Coaching | |||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||||||
| As player: | |||||||||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||
| Head coaching record | |||||||||||||||
| Regular season | 9–17 (.346) | ||||||||||||||
| Career | 9–17 (.346) (NFL) 31–15 (.674) (high school) | ||||||||||||||
| Coaching profile at Pro Football Reference | |||||||||||||||
Antonio Durran Pierce[1] (born October 26, 1978) is an American professionalfootball coach and formerlinebacker. He served as the head coach for theLas Vegas Raiders of theNational Football League (NFL) in 2023 and 2024.
Pierce played nine seasons as a linebacker in the NFL and he won aSuper Bowl playing with theNew York Giants in the 2007 season. He playedcollege football for theArizona Wildcats and was signed as anundrafted free agent by theWashington Redskins, and later played for the Giants. In 2014, Pierce began his coaching career as the head coach atLong Beach Polytechnic High School and then served as an assistant coach atArizona State University from 2018 to 2021.
Pierce playedhigh school football atParamount High School inParamount, California. As a senior for the Pirates, Pierce earned All-CIFSouthern Section Division 2 accolades at linebacker while also playing at the fullback position.[2][3]
He then played two years of football atMount San Antonio College inWalnut, California, before transferring to theUniversity of Arizona. In the fall of 1997 as a sophomore, Pierce helped lead Mt. SAC to theCCCAA state title, intercepting a pass for the Mounties in the fourth quarter of a 38–35 win overSan Francisco City College.[4]
As a senior atArizona, he had three sacks, 77 tackles (ten for losses), two forced fumbles, one interception, and one blocked kick, earningAll-Pac-10 honorable mention.[5]
Pierce was not taken in the2001 NFL draft after his senior year because many NFL scouts considered him too undersized to play linebacker in the NFL.[6]
TheWashington Redskins signed him as anundrafted free agent in 2001. He played in all 16 games as a rookie, with only eight starts. He recorded 52 tackles, one sack, and one interception during his rookie campaign. The interception came againstJake Plummer. Over the next two seasons, Pierce played sporadically, recording only 18 and 15 tackles respectively, during the 2002 and 2003 seasons.
It was not until the 2004 season, his fourth in the league, that he played a full season, upon replacing the injuredMicheal Barrow.[7] That season, Pierce logged a career-high 114 tackles, 95 of them solo. He also had one forced fumble, one sack, and two interceptions, including a pick offKen Dorsey returned 76 yards for atouchdown.
TheNew York Giants signed Pierce on March 3, 2005, to start at middle linebacker. He became the captain of the defense, and in 13 games, Pierce notched 100 tackles, 80 of them solo, two interceptions, and one forced fumble returned for a touchdown. His 2005 season ended early as he suffered a leg injury, against thePhiladelphia Eagles, and missed the final three regular season games as well as the Giants' only postseason game, a 23–0 loss to theCarolina Panthers.
In 2006, Pierce recorded a career-high 138 tackles (109 solo), a sack, an interception, and defended eight passes. Pierce was named as a first alternate for thePro Bowl. He was invited to play in Hawaii afterBrian Urlacher suffered a toe injury inSuper Bowl XLI, and withdrew from the Pro Bowl.
In the 2007 season, Pierce was a central figure in the Giants' path to their thirdSuper Bowl title. He made a key tackle in the first half of the NFC Championship game against theGreen Bay Packers, stopping running backBrandon Jackson on a screen pass on 3rd and 8,[8] saving a touchdown and forcing the Packers to settle for a field goal instead. The Giants would go on to win in overtime.[9]
Pierce was released by the team on February 11, 2010.
Following his release, Pierce announced his retirement from football on July 8, 2010. He also stated that he would then begin his career as an NFL analyst forESPN.[10]
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Cmb | Solo | Ast | Sck | TFL | Int | Yds | TD | Lng | PD | FF | FR | Yds | TD | ||
| 2001 | WAS | 16 | 8 | 53 | 44 | 9 | 1.0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2002 | WAS | 8 | 1 | 18 | 13 | 5 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2003 | WAS | 15 | 0 | 15 | 14 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2004 | WAS | 16 | 16 | 114 | 87 | 27 | 1.0 | 3 | 2 | 94 | 1 | 78 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| 2005 | NYG | 13 | 13 | 100 | 80 | 20 | 2.5 | 7 | 2 | 41 | 0 | 24 | 11 | 1 | 2 | 12 | 1 |
| 2006 | NYG | 16 | 16 | 139 | 109 | 30 | 1.0 | 10 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 2007 | NYG | 16 | 16 | 102 | 76 | 26 | 1.0 | 8 | 1 | 28 | 0 | 28 | 8 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 2008 | NYG | 15 | 15 | 95 | 72 | 23 | 1.5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2009 | NYG | 9 | 9 | 55 | 40 | 15 | 1.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| 124 | 94 | 691 | 535 | 156 | 9.0 | 39 | 7 | 169 | 1 | 78 | 43 | 8 | 10 | 17 | 1 | ||
| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Cmb | Solo | Ast | Sck | TFL | Int | Yds | TD | Lng | PD | FF | FR | Yds | TD | ||
| 2006 | NYG | 1 | 1 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2007 | NYG | 4 | 4 | 25 | 22 | 3 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2008 | NYG | 1 | 1 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | 6 | 42 | 34 | 8 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
On February 7, 2014, Pierce was named the head coach at national powerhouseLong Beach Polytechnic High School, replacing Raul Lara, who stepped down as the head coach of the program after 13 seasons.[11] After an 11–2 first season, the Jackrabbits struggled under Pierce, missing the playoffs for the first time in 36 years in his second season at the helm. The struggles continued in 2016 and 2017, with the program failing to reach double digit wins in both years and losing by multiple scores in the playoffs.
On December 21, 2017, Pierce announced his resignation as head coach and was named linebackers coach atArizona State University. After two seasons as the Sun Devils' linebackers coach, Pierce was promoted to co-defensive coordinator alongsideMarvin Lewis.[12] On January 20, 2021, Pierce was elevated to be the sole defensive coordinator at ASU after sharing the role withMarvin Lewis during the 2020 season.[13] He resigned during anNCAA recruiting violation investigation prior to 2022 season.[14] In August 2023, ASU announced a self-imposed bowl ban, hoping to lessen further penalties resulting from the ongoing investigation.[15]
Following Pierce's resignation, theNCAA investigation continued, eventually determining that Pierce was the, "ringleader in orchestrating the recruiting violations" at ASU, and that Pierce, "used his position of authority to pressure staff members into engaging in violations, often by instilling fear that they would lose their jobs if they did not follow his orders".[16] This included ordering an assistant to commit recruiting tampering to attempt to land a transfer not in thetransfer portal, and refusing to cooperate with the investigation.[17] Pierce's actions were described as a "scheme" and involved Pierce taking individuals to agentleman's club as part of recruiting visits.[18] The NCAA levied an 8 year show-cause penalty against Pierce; should an NCAA school hire Pierce prior to 2032, he would be suspended for the entire first season of his return.[19] In a statement regarding the penalties, ASU presidentMichael M. Crow declared the university to be, "disappointed and embarrassed by the actions of certain former football staff members who took advantage of a global pandemic to hide their behavior."[20]
In 2022, Pierce was hired by theLas Vegas Raiders as their linebackers coach under head coachJosh McDaniels.[21]
On October 31, 2023, Pierce was named the interim head coach of the Raiders following the firing of head coachJosh McDaniels.[22] He namedAidan O'Connell as the starting quarterback for the rest of the season on November 1, benchingJimmy Garoppolo.[23] On November 5, 2023, Pierce made his head coaching debut against theNew York Giants, for whom he had previously played. The Raiders won the game 30–6, a season high in points for the Raiders at that point.[24]
On December 14, 2023, the Raiders defeated theLos Angeles Chargers 63–21, scoring the most points in franchise history.[25] A week later, on Christmas Day, the Raiders recorded their first win over theKansas City Chiefs since2020.[26]
The Raiders were eliminated from playoff contention on New Year's Eve, following a 23–20 loss to theIndianapolis Colts.
On January 19, 2024, the Raiders officially named Pierce the 23rd head coach in franchise history.[27]
On January 7, 2025, Pierce was fired by the Raiders, after finishing 4–13 in2024.[28] Pierce finished his tenure in Las Vegas with a 9–17 (.346) record.
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Long Beach Poly Jackrabbits()(2014–2017) | |||||||||
| 2014 | Long Beach Poly | 11–2 | 6–0 | 1st | |||||
| 2015 | Long Beach Poly | 4–6 | 3–3 | 4th | |||||
| 2016 | Long Beach Poly | 7–4 | 6–0 | 1st | |||||
| 2017 | Long Beach Poly | 9–3 | 6–0 | 1st | |||||
| Long Beach Poly: | 31–15 | 21–3 | |||||||
| Total: | 31–15 | ||||||||
| National championship Conference title Conference division title or championship game berth | |||||||||
| Team | Year | Regular season | Postseason | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Won | Lost | Ties | Win % | Finish | Won | Lost | Win % | Result | ||
| LV* | 2023 | 5 | 4 | 0 | .556 | 2nd in AFC West | — | — | — | — |
| LV | 2024 | 4 | 13 | 0 | .235 | 4th in AFC West | — | — | — | — |
| Total | 9 | 17 | 0 | .346 | 0 | 0 | .000 | |||
*Interim head coach
Pierce is married to Jocelyn and is the father of seven. He has resided inPalos Verdes Estates, California. His father, Cleo Burrows, is fromBermuda.
Inspired by his own experiences growing up in Compton, it has become Pierce's mission to improve the quality of life for the youth in the Long Beach/Compton area. For several years, Pierce has offered a free football camp for underprivileged youths.[citation needed]
In 2006, Pierce became the spokesperson for Giants Academy—a program for inner city youth geared toward helping these children succeed despite obstacles in their life. He is also involved in the "Read Across America" program where he reads to children whose parents are undergoing treatment for chemical dependency at the Odyssey House in Harlem.[29]
In 2007, Pierce received the "United Way Man of the Year" award and was honored by the Catholic Diocese for his support of the community.
While playing for the Giants in 2008, he was a resident ofMonroe Township, Middlesex County, New Jersey.[30]
Pierce was honored at the 2008 ESPY awards along with the Giants.
Pierce was present when teammatePlaxico Burress negligently shot himself in the thigh at theLatin Quarter Night Club inNew York City on November 28, 2008.[31] Police say that Pierce drove Burress to the hospital and then returned home with the gun in the glove compartment of his car. The police impounded Pierce'sSUV to search for blood and gunpowder residue.[32] Burress was charged with, and ultimately pleaded guilty to, criminal possession of a weapon; however Pierce was not indicted on any charges. On August 3, 2009, Pierce was cleared of all criminal charges stemming from the incident.[33] He was represented in the matter by notable NYC criminal defense attorney,Michael F. Bachner.[34]
Pierce served as a communications intern onThe Howard Stern Show on May 7, 2008. He stated he would like to pursue a career in broadcasting after his NFL career.[35] Near the end of the day's show he asked to stay for the remainder of the week, which Stern agreed to.[36]
In 2025, Pierce joined CBS Sports as an analyst on the network’s streaming Sunday pregame show,The NFL Today+.[37][38]
