Former NFL general manager Michael Lombardi tore into newly hired Las Vegas Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce, claiming on a Monday episode of his podcast that Pierce doesn’t know the raider way.
“Because he’s from Compton he thinks he knows the Raider Way. It’s a joke,” Lombardi said on his “The GM Shuffle” podcast.
Wild: Former #NFL GM Michael Lombardi on #Raiders HC Antonio Pierce:
“He thinks he knows the Raider Way because he’s from Compton. It’s a joke. This guy is driving me crazy. Can he just shut up? Why won’t somebody in the Raiders tell him to shut up?”
(via The GM Shuffle… pic.twitter.com/IjWih2WItP
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) February 28, 2024
“He has no idea about increasing 40 times, he has no idea about the protocols and the specifics of each position. Because that’s essentially what the Raider way is, is ‘what are we looking for at each position?’ It’s not about playing tough.”
I typically like Lombardi, but he’s out of pocket here. The former Raiders personnel head may still be harboring some ill will against the organization after they fired him in 2007. (RELATED: NFL Players Rank Worst Places To Play Football — It’s No Surprise Which City Got The Top Spot)
To add insult to injury, Vegas booted his son Mick, who was serving as the team’s offensive coordinator until the team cleared house in the Josh McDaniels firing.
Lombardi is clearly still salty, talking about how Pierce can’t evaluate a draft before he even participates in his first scouting combine as a head coach.
Lombardi alluded to Pierce drafting guys who didn’t even run a 40-yard dash, but again, Pierce has yet to draft anybody as a head coach. Who knows, maybe Lombardi knows something we don’t about Pierce’s input on the team’s draft picks in recent years. But his players like him and seem ready to run through a brick wall for him. If you ask me, that’s the Raider way.