What a difference a real Coach makes!!! I am now going to tell you the honest truth on how it all went down..

I ran quickly into the Coach McDaniels meeting room after his MNF loss, force choked him and yelled

"You were warned what defeat would bring! I will tolerate your weakness no longer!"

He somehow was magically slammed against an office wall, left a urine trail and was never seen again.

I assume he will apply for the New England Patriot bathroom attendant soon since he adores his former team so much.

Enough of our former non enthusiastic Coach! Let’s hear about our new one…Coach Antonio Pierce!!!

He inspired, applauded and challenged our team all Week! The results? A 30 to 6 win!!!! The Force was strong with him!

"It makes it a lot easier for us to connect with him because he understands the mind of a player," wide receiver Davante Adams said. "And he’s done a really good job just making sure we understand that it’s not about him, it’s about this team."

Coach Pierce even changed who would be watching on his sideline..

Practice players will banned no more!!

Under McDaniels, practice. players were relegated to watching from boxes inside the stadium.

"That wasn’t my belief," Pierce said Monday about keeping practice squad players off the sideline.

"They got the Raiders uniform," Pierce said. "Them guys bust their tails. They’re giving us looks on offense, defense, special teams. They’re working out every morning, they’re in the meetings. They’re in everything, but on game day, where are they?"

I believe our culture has changed in the span of a Week. I believe it’s easier when you have a Coach that inspires angry/hungry men.

"We wanted to do it for AP," running back Josh Jacobs said. "We’re going to play with everything we got for that man, just because of the position he’s in."

"Mentally tough," is how Pierce described it. "That’s what I prided myself on. That was my way as a player, to have that kind of mindset. Not to blink, not to worry about anything."

TOUGHNESS! That was the theme throughout the week, and it included a physical, fully-padded hour long Thursday practice, followed by a highly competitive Friday practice in which the first-team offense and first-team defense butted heads during a spirited two-minute drill period.

"You could just tell, just being out there, everyone wanted to be out there. Everyone wanted to get better," Eluemunor said. "And just having AP just push us as hard as he can, but also just being that leader that we needed. We just need that. And the energy that he brings, you want to win for a guy like that."

Our Pro Bowl Wide Receiver was also ecstatic after the game.

"It’s obviously a new start," said wide receiver Davante Adams, who had four catches for 34 yards. "We’ve got a new leader now, somebody that we can get behind."

Coach AP spent most of his time with the Offensive Line last Week. He felt this was the most important group to council and boy did it show! Josh Jacobs rushed for 98 yards with 2 Touchdowns!

Said Jacobs through his signature smile, sheathed this season amid all the dysfunction:

"We really didn’t know how it was going to go, but the whole week I just kept preaching to the guys, ‘Let’s lock in with each other and go out there and have fun. Play how we think we could play."

Pierce referred to Jacobs as the "heartbeat" of the franchise, sharing a similar sentiment last week with the 25-year-old team captain, who relayed afterward the coach’s message ensured he would have to "stand on my word to him."

"He just told me the way I play the game with passion it ignites the guys … and that’s what I tried to come out and bring today," Jacobs said. "Whenever you make me have to stand on business, I tend to get on that." Said Jacobs of the first drive: "Everything that could go right was going right."

Other players agreed #8 is the engine of the Team.

"It’s common sense. You have to be able to run the football, because if you run the football, you can do anything," rookie wide receiver Tre Tucker said. "It was good to see Josh kind of get going and doing what we know he can do."

Pleased as he was with his improved production, Jacobs was happier for Pierce — knowing he helped secure for him a victory in his head coaching debut.

"We all sat down like, ‘No matter how this goes, we’re going with everything we’ve got for that man,’ just because of the position he’s in," Jacobs said. "We wanted to go out there and play for him and show that we can play good in all three phases of football. We went out there and did that today. I think it’s the best we played as a team all season."

Coach Pierce handed each player a blank piece of paper to all players last Week. He wanted every player to write down what they wanted to accomplish in the up and coming Weeks. Players revealed what they wrote on Monday..

"A new beginning," safety Tre’von Moehrig said after the Raiders improved to 4-5.

"A clean slate," is how cornerback Nate Hobbs put it.

Many wished more of the same. Most of the fans wanted to know why this kind of energy was non-existent in the past few Weeks. All it took was a wish list???

"It’s not a knock on anyone, just the energy in the building was completely different," tackle Jermaine Eluemunor said. "Just having a swagger about ourselves and just wanting to play football and be out there."

PASSION has been found! You will all be Sith Lords in no time!!!

Even the Defense played their best game of the year!!!!

The menacing squad had eight sacks in a game for the first time since 2010, led by Maxx Crosby’s three. Amik Robertson and Nate Hobbs picked up interceptions. Robert Spillane led the way with nine tackles, and Crosby added eight tackles (three for loss) and three quarterback hits. New York was 3 of 12 on third down.

Did I read the correct stat correctly?!?! EIGHT SACKS!?!?!?!?

It was the most by a Raiders team since they had eight against the Seahawks in 2010.

"I feel like this group has something special going on," Crosby said of the defensive line. "It’s one game, but if you watch every single week, we have a lot of guys improving on a weekly basis."

Crosby said the biggest key is to play well on early downs to force opponents into passing situations and give themselves a chance to get to the quarterback. The pressure also led to two interceptions and several errant throws.

"Today we did that, and you saw the results," he said

"That’s the confidence you have to have in this league," he said. "You have to go out there with ill intent and the intention to go win. If you have any doubt that you’re going to succeed, you’re already a step behind. We had a lot of confidence, and we were ready to go. You just felt it in the building."

While it might not have been a big hit or the result of a splashy spin move, Malcolm Koonce was credited with his first sack since Dec. 12, 2021, when he touched down Giants quarterback Daniel Jones after he fell on the first play of the second quarter.

"I’ll take it," Koonce said. "I grew up a Giants fan, so it’s only right for my first one in a while to come against them."

As a kid in the Hudson Valley just north of New York City, Koonce’s father would constantly show him film of Lawrence Taylor.

"It was automatic that was going to be my team," Koonce said. "I didn’t really have a choice."

The Defense defiantly had new swagger in their step. Can they keep this up?!?!?

"We write our own script," Hobbs said. "We write our own story. Today, I think we wrote that first chapter, that first page."

Said defensive lineman Adam Butler, who had two tackles and a sack: "When you hold onto the past, it always serves as a weight. It’s like chains holding you back. AP did a great job of getting us to let those chains go. That’s exactly what we did today."

So how exactly did the Raiders move the ball so effectively? Our new Offensive Coordinator Bo Hardegree might of received the right ideas from the right kind of people. He wanted his players to be confident and comfortable with what they were running in his first game as an NFL play-caller….

So he asked them.

"Even during the game, I’m telling them what I’m thinking and what’s coming up and asking what they’re seeing, which is important," Hardegree said Tuesday at his weekly news conference. "They’re the guys out there. I’m calling the plays, and I want to call plays they feel confident about, and if there’s something I really want to get out there to them, I’ll let them know what’s coming.. It’s just constant communication with those guys."

KEEP IT UP BO!

Bo and Antonio even made our Rookie Aidan O' Connell look like a bad ass! The kid from Purdue passed for 209 yards including 50 yard bomb to speedster Tre Tucker!

"He’s a dog, man. You know what I mean? Nothing more. Nothing less. He’s a dog," Tucker said. "Just the leadership qualities, man. He’s poised. … I’m at the facility pretty early, and he’s always the first one there. Studying. Studying or reading his Bible. … He just works hard, man. Poised. That’s what you want to see out of a quarterback."

God bless you brother!!

"It was a hard and unfortunate situation that happened this week," O’Connell said. "To have a coaching shift this early definitely wasn’t expected, but the guys instilled confidence in me … They were definitely excited to perform like this. Felt relieved and happy and super joyful. It was definitely rocking in the locker room." Too bad he didn’t stay for the smoking party!!!

O’Connell was just steps from it when the sweet smell of victory cigars whiffed into where he spoke. He walked off stage, picked up a bag and left.

I like the focus, kid!!!!! You will be a disciplined Jedi in no time!!!!

Mad Maxx was responsible for the stogies!

"I got them taken care of (Saturday), and we had them ready to rock," Crosby said. "It was a lot of fun. Everybody knows I’m sober, but I love my cigars, so I wanted the guys to have some fun after the game."

"It’s the first time," Adams said with a smile. "But I’ve never been in a predicament like this, so it was warranted."

Greg Van Roten had a few puffs with his team as well.

"That was a first for sure, but it’s very cool," he said. "You want to see guys let loose and enjoy it. It felt really good to get this one. A lot of guys stepped up and hopefully just the first step in the right direction for us."’

The only thing I wish I saw more of? Tae targets and catches!!! The best WR on our team was limited to four receptions for 34 yards! Are you still good, #17?!?!

"It’s about how (the offense) looks, and it looked like it was supposed to look out there," said Adams, who had one catch for 6 yards in the first half. "We weren’t perfect by any means. But we were able to run the ball and do things we set out to do since I’ve been here."

Whew! You finally sound happy...

"I’m not concerned with (numbers). Do I want to catch more balls? Of course. But at the end of the day, it’s not about me. This is about the team, and my whole (team) wants to catch more balls and to turn 30 (points) into 40 or 50. That’s why. It’s for the team."

I love the unselfishness, Tae!

Even Punter AJ Cole had a great Sunday! He continued his elite season with a record-breaking performance, averaging 63.6 yards on five punts.

It’s the highest single-game average in NFL history for a player with at least four attempts! Keep improving Cole World!

Summary:

https://www.nfl.com/games/giants-at-raiders-2023-reg-9?active-tab=stats

Turn the page quickly, Raider Nation! We are facing a top 10 Defense in a matter of days! The New York Jets are tough, aggressive and gritty! They rank 8th in points per game, 5th in pass yards per play, 4th in overall yards per play and 4th in red zone Touchdown percentage! We have our work cut out for us! In addition, QB Zach Wilson has been passing effectively! He torched the hated Chargers for 263 yards on Monday night Football! He must be stopped by severe force by our Gamorrean Guard like D-Linemen! Bring Axes if you have them! I need him at least bruised! We also have to keep eyes on alien speedsters Garrett Wilson and Tyler Conklin! Bring your A game, Defensive Backs! Show us you’re all still passionate at what you do! I need more turnovers, sacks and TFL’s! Stay fucking lit, men!!!! My Star Destroyer is leaving for Vegas soon... I’ll see you on the DARK SIDE! GO RAIDERS!!!!!!

Excelsior!

Lord of the Sith, Master of all evil

DARTH RAIDER