'No one ever wavered': Rich Bisaccia reflects on season as Raiders interim head coach

Jan 17, 2022 at 02:30 PM

Raiders.com Staff

Opening statement:

"First of all, I'd like to thank certainly our players for their constant and consistent work and relentless effort to improve every day. That's all we really asked of them. They succeeded in that. Also like to thank the coaching staff for never blinking and for always putting the man first and then coaching the players second. Also, I'd love to give a shout out to Raider Nation for their loud and never-ending support for our team. They heard you. They heard you, and you need to understand that. To have fans in Allegiant Stadium for the first time this season was an incredible experience, and, in the future, I think this team will take great pride in playing at home and making it an advantage to them. To play the Chargers with the blackout crowd was energizing for our players in that game and I think it showed, again, all the way to the end.

"I'd like to finish by also thanking Mark Davis, Mike Mayock and the entire Raider organization for their on-time support throughout the entire season. It was much appreciated. No one ever wavered. I believe it's a privilege to coach and play for the Las Vegas Raiders and in the National Football League."

A message to #RaiderNation from Interim Head Coach Rich Bisaccia ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/kQZMS0WOQp
— Las Vegas Raiders (@Raiders) January 17, 2022

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His learned experiences from head coaching this season:

"I guess I learned that I could do the job. I learned that I could have conversations with other coaches to figure out how to possibly win a game and still keep the same role that I had, where you can build relationship with players and still do the job that I started off with. So, I can see now how offensive coordinators can get a head job and still call plays and defensive coordinators get a head job and still call plays. So, I've kind of learned that about myself as well."

Advice he'd give to other interim head coaches:

"I'd say the first thing is count on the coaches that you're there with. You don't all of a sudden get put in that position and now you're an expert on everything that goes on in any type of sport that you end up getting in that position with. So, that'd be the first thing. And then the second thing is to always remember – that it's about the players. And if you try to put yourself in front or have a personal agenda, it usually doesn't work out. It's about the players. It's about putting them in a position to give them the opportunity to be at their best."

His most cherished moment from the season:

"[I]'d say the locker room after the Chargers game. To know that those guys can let all that out, just that emotion that they've gone through all year and put themselves in that position to win it in the end in that fashion, another overtime game, and the emotions that they had for each other and the emotions that they had of, maybe, I don't know a sense of, 'Wow, we really did this together.' I think that probably was the best moment for me throughout the whole year."

On his connections with players and coaches on the team:

"I'm extremely grateful for the relationships that have been built with me and the players, along with the other coaches, and the players and me and the coaches."

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Las Vegas Raiders defensive tackle Quinton Jefferson's (77) pads in the locker room prior to the Las Vegas Raiders' arrival for their postseason away game against the Cincinnati Bengals.