NEW HAPPENINGS: Las Vegas Raiders head coach and GM search: Due diligence or Mark Davis having second thoughts?…

When you inquire about the Las Vegas Raiders’ head coach and general manager vacancies, most team beat

reporters and NFL insiders will tell you that Antonio Pierce and Champ Kelly appear to be the front-runners,

respectively.

After speaking with a person familiar with the matter, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported over the weekend that Pierce

had become the “leading candidate.”

According to Schefter’s source, “I would be blown away if Antonio weren’t the pick.”

Kelly has been present for the Raiders’ head-coaching interview process, according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.Vic

Tafur of The Athletic made a joke regarding when the Raiders would reveal their permanent general manager and

head coach.

The Raiders haven’t officially decided whether to keep Kelly and Pierce in full-time positions, despite the expectation

of most fans. This gave rise to conjecture.

Might owner Mark Davis shock everyone by selecting a different candidate to be general manager and try his hand at

hiring a well-known head coach?

Albert Breer of the MMQB brought up former Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel in the conversation.

“I believe they will likely stick with Antonio Pierce if they are unable to sign a big fish like Vrabel, Jim Harbaugh, or

Bill Belichick,” Breer stated in a mailbag reply.

Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk most recently fueled the rumor around Vrabel.

When you start making connections, the word on the NFL streets over the weekend was that Vrabel was joining the

Raiders. Even if Tom Brady’s bid to buy five to ten percent of the team has not yet been accepted by the owners and

may never be, he is still very much a part of the squad. Regarding the Las Vegas Raiders head coach choice, the

source states, “But he is involved, and he and Vrabel are tight.”

The Raiders can now announce the hiring of their general manager and head coach positions since they have

complied with the Rooney Rule by interviewing two external minority candidates.

Many fans are worried and want to know if the Raiders are just being cautious or if Davis is changing his mind about

his interim players.