Just In: Antonio Pierce Wants to Add to His Promising CB Room
Las Vegas Raiders Coach Antonio Pierce wants to make it “a priority” to add to the unit this offseason, but he does believe he has a solid foundation to work with. “I think you saw the addition of Jack Jones [whistles],” Pierce said at the NFL Combine on Feb. 28. “Big time, good for us, confidence, swag, anticipation, lifted the whole group and the defense. “Nate Hobbs, if we could just keep him on the field for 17 games, come on. Probably one of the best star nickels that you’ll get out there because he can cover, he’s physical, he can tackle, extremely competitive.
“I thought Amik [Robertson] did a good job. I know he’s a free agent, we’ll see how that plays out.And then, you look at JB, [Jakorian] Bennett. I mean, we threw him in the fire early, started as a rookie — what was it? — I don’t know, six or seven games and then off and on after that with injuries. But his confidence came back at the end of the season. “Didn’t really get to show it on film, but we saw it in practice, saw him the other day in the facility, looks amazing. ” … Do we got to add pieces? Yeah, we got to add pieces. And the pieces we want are guys that want to compete, short-term memory, we want the alphas, man, I want those guys out there that [are] extremely confident. They got to be.
“They got to have short-term memory, too, now. Because they’re going to get popped, they’re going to get popped. But you want those guys, man, that just [say]: ‘I want that challenge, I want Tae [Davante Adams] every day in practice, I want to go against Tre Tucker, I want Jakobi [Meyers], I want to go against that guy every day to get better.’ “I want those guys.”
Pierce said he doesn’t want to bring in cornerbacks who just want to wear the brand; he wants them to have the desire “to be the best.” “Is that going to happen right away?” Pierce said. “No; but that group, overall, with who we got in that room, is going to bring the best out of them.” The NFL Draft will be held in Detroit, Mich., on April 25-27, 2024. The Las Vegas Raiders currently have the No. 13 overall pick.
