Antonio Pierce's coaching speech won't solve the Raiders' QB problems

The reigning Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs are the only undefeated team in the league and are obviously at the top of the AFC West record with a 6-0 record. The Las Vegas Raiders have lost their last three games (86-46 overall) and are in the basement of the division with a record of 2-5.

The longtime division rivals meet this week at Allegiant Stadium, where Andy Reid boasts a perfect 5-0 record (including a win in Super Bowl LVIII).

Last week, Aidan O'Connell got the start for the Silver and Black for the second straight year at SoFi Stadium. In the first quarter, he made six of his 10 throws for 52 yards before breaking his thumb.

Enter Gardner Minshew, who began the season as a starter for Antonio Pierce's club. He completed less than 50 percent of his passes (15 of 34) for 154 yards, was fumbled three times and lost a fumble in a 20-15 loss to the Rams in which the Raiders settled for five field goals.

Pierce had this to say on Monday about Minshew, who has had issues with ball security throughout his career.

“He needs to get out of his own head. I mean, he's a quarterback, he's been in this league, he gets it. Obviously we encouraged him. Very positive on the sidelines with everything that happened yesterday. Our team said, no blinking. That's all he kept hearing on the sidelines of facing adversity.

“I thought our defense responded well, even when they suddenly made a change and scored, but we kept fighting the whole game. Even at the end of the game when we had the chance to make another stop, we did it. Gave the offense the ball again in less than two minutes to see if we could get the win.”

Minshew threw eight interceptions and lost two fumbles. He has 10 of the Raiders' top 16 turnovers. Pierce's club scored just 12 touchdowns in seven games, regardless of who was behind center. It was a dismal start for the AFC West's only team with a losing record.