The Carolina Panthers humiliated the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday, which infuriated head coach Antonio Pierce during the team’s news conference after the game.

Reporters were informed by Pierce that certain players made “business decisions” while playing, and he bemoaned their lack of effort. Additionally, he implied that the players who made those choices jeopardised their employment.
“They [were] not present,” Pierce remarked. “As the game progressed, certain people undoubtedly made business decisions; I do not think it was the team. And we will continue to make commercial decisions.”

Pierce remained anonymous. Furthermore, based only on Pierce’s references, we will not be speculating here about the individual players’ job security. However, it is fair to say that on Sunday, the Raiders collectively and as individuals put on one of the worst performances of the NFL season.

When the awful Panthers’ offence ignites against the Raiders
With only one touchdown and a total of 13 points from their opening-day losses to the Saints and Chargers, the Panthers were in disarray going into Sunday. Football’s worst offence belonged to Carolina.

On Monday, the Panthers benched quarterback Bryce Young, a former first-round selection, in favour of seasoned backup Andy Dalton. With one of the best passing performances of the early NFL season, Dalton reminded the Bengals of his 2016 Pro Bowl form in a 36-22 victory over the Raiders.
Against a helpless Raiders defence, Dalton completed 70% of his throws for 319 yards, three touchdowns, and no turnovers. It was the first time an NFL quarterback had thrown for three touchdowns and 300 yards in a single game this season. Diontae Johnson (122 yards, 1 touchdown) and Chuba Hubbard (114 yards) both scored 100 yards rushing for the Panthers.

They did indeed have a new quarterback. However, this was the Panthers’ highest-scoring performance since 2022 and only their second time scoring thirty or more points since the 2023 season began. Although Dalton was a significant upgrade over Young, the Raiders barely put up much of a fight.
It was not much better on offence for the Raiders. In the fourth quarter, Las Vegas added 15 points that had no value. By the time the Panthers grabbed a 33-7 advantage early in the fourth quarter, the game was already over. All of this occurred at the Raiders’ home opener.

“It is not good enough,” Pierce remarked. “The assembly was prepared. Thank you for your attendance. Everyone fulfilled their portion. They appeared. No, we didn’t.

“The plan was not sufficiently sound. What we had anticipated working had not worked. On the lawn, we failed to perform. We also did not exert the same amount of effort as we did in previous games. We were whooped in the ass.

Maxx Crosby and Davante Adams react to Pierce’s remarks.
Pro Bowl players Davante Adams and Maxx Crosby, leaders of the Raiders, were asked about their reactions to Pierce’s remark about “business judgements.” Neither conjectured about the players Pierce was alluding to.

According to ESPN, Adams remarked, “I feel like, I do not know—this is tough for me to recognise that.” “I am not certain.”

Crosby went into further detail, but he also refrained from taking sides.

“I am not sure,” replied Crosby. “A lot of things exist. I insist that you see the movie. simply was not up to par. Just a disappointing defeat. Like, s***ty. We were not at our best when playing football.

Many of the folks in our community must face the mirror. All individuals must persist in improving themselves. You know what I mean? It is a wake-up call, not the end of the world. We need to improve.”
After winning the position in nine games with an interim tag the previous season, veteran NFL linebacker Pierce is now in his first full-time season as the Raiders head coach. His ability to interact with players and his positive relationships went a long way towards earning him the job.

Sunday is the lowest moment of his leadership and the first notable indication of unrest in the locker room since Pierce assumed the position. His time in Las Vegas will largely depend on how he and the Raiders react.