Head coach Antonio Pierce has named top highly experienced coaches as the interim offensive coordinator and offensive line coach for the Las Vegas Raiders. The team announced these appointments, following Pierce’s decision to dismiss former offensive coordinator Luke Getsy, offensive line coach James Cregg, and quarterbacks coach Rich Scangarello after the Raiders’ 41-24 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 9.
This coaching restructure allows them to take on new responsibilities, with the team’s bye week giving them extra time to adjust. The main question now is whether they can address and improve the Raiders’ offensive issues and reduce costly errors.
While Pierce is committed to seeing what they can bring to the table, expectations should be tempered. Both were already part of the staff during the Raiders’ 2-7 season; Turner served as the pass game coordinator, and Philbin was a senior offensive assistant. Pierce could have elevated them to offensive coordinator and offensive line coach sooner, but he initially chose Getsy and Cregg for those roles.
The Raiders’ offensive struggles are well known, and Turner and Philbin face a low bar. Las Vegas ranks 26th in scoring, averaging just 18.7 points per game, and has the NFL’s worst ground game, totaling a mere 692 rushing yards. Whether Turner and Philbin can bring noticeable improvements is questionable.
Turner’s track record as an offensive coordinator doesn’t inspire confidence. During his last stint with Washington from 2020 to 2022, his offenses struggled to score. In 2022, Washington averaged just 18.9 points per game, ranking near the bottom of the league, while the previous two seasons weren’t much better, with scoring averages of 19.7 and 20.9 points per game, respectively. While some argue he lacked the personnel in Washington, he now steps into a Raiders offense with certain talents but hampered by injuries and lacking depth.
The quarterback situation highlights these issues. Gardner Minshew was benched again after the Bengals loss, with Desmond Ridder taking over. Ridder was signed from the Falcons’ practice squad following Aidan O’Connell’s broken thumb against the Rams, sidelining him for the season.
Philbin, meanwhile, steps in to oversee an offensive line that has shown flashes but struggled to consistently adapt to the zone blocking scheme. Ironically, Philbin himself is a longtime proponent of the zone system, having trained under Alex Gibbs, a key figure in popularizing it. Like coaches Tom Cable, Mike McCarthy, and both Mike and Kyle Shanahan, Philbin is deeply rooted in Gibbs’ philosophy, as evidenced during his time with McCarthy in Green Bay and later with the Dallas Cowboys from 2020-2022.
The outside zone run has been a Philbin staple, and now, without Cregg in the room, he has the chance to fully shape the blocking approach. However, it’s worth noting that Cregg also came from a similar background, having worked as an assistant under Kyle Shanahan with the 49ers before joining Pierce in Las Vegas.
Philbin’s coaching style emphasizes fundamentals, focusing on details and communication over scheme, which could benefit the Raiders’ offensive line. During his tenure with Dallas, the Cowboys ranked in the top 10 for rushing yards in both 2021 and 2022 and also placed in the top 10 for passing yards in 2020 and 2021. Turner’s recent experience with Washington saw their ground game rank 12th in rushing yards in 2021 and 2022.
For a Las Vegas offense currently ranked at the bottom in rushing, even modest gains under Philbin and Turner could be a positive. However, translating theory into practice will be the real challenge.
Even More Old-School Flavor
The newly restructured Raiders offensive staff also includes former head coach Norv Turner, Scott’s father, who joins as a senior offensive advisor. So, it’s out with the old and in with the… even older?
Philbin, 63, and Norv Turner, 72, are seasoned coaching veterans. Norv last held an NFL role in 2019 as the Carolina Panthers’ special assistant to head coach Ron Rivera. This isn’t the first time the Turners have worked on the same staff — they were both with the Panthers in 2019, when Scott was the interim offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, and Norv served as Rivera’s assistant.
In 2019, the Panthers’ offense ranked 20th in both scoring (21.3 points per game) and passing yards, and 14th in rushing yards. This is also a return to familiar territory for Norv, who was the Raiders’ head coach in 2004 and 2005, posting a 9-23 record over two seasons.
Leave a Reply