Antonio Pierce stood behind a lectern and took questions during an end-of-season news conference, even though his future as the Las Vegas Raiders’ coach remained very much in question.

The organization could have informed Pierce, as it did Tuesday, that his services were no longer required and let him go on his way without speaking with the media.

But Pierce once again was asked to represent the club, and the Raiders sent mixed signals until the announcement a day later that he had been fired after just one season as their full-time coach.

“We appreciate Antonio’s leadership, first as an interim head coach and this past season as the head coach,” the team said in a statement. “We are grateful for his ability to reignite what it means to be a Raider throughout the entire organization.”

Pierce took over as the interim coach midway through the 2023 season and went 5-4 the rest of the way, and players advocated strongly for him to get the job on a full-time basis.

But the Raiders, after a 2-2 start this season, went on a 10-game losing streak to put his job in jeopardy. The Raiders dealt with a number of injuries, including to defensive linemen Maxx Crosby and Christian Wilkins, and finished the season 4-13.

Pierce was the fourth full-time Raiders coach in the past decade.

Going back to 2001 when Jon Gruden was traded to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Raiders have had 13 head coaches, including interims Rich Bisaccia and Tony Sparano. That’s the most in the NFL over that span.

Pierce was one of three Black coaches hired a year ago, along with Jerod Mayo of the New England Patriots and Raheem Morris of the Atlanta Falcons. Mayo was fired Sunday, leaving Morris as the only remaining coach from that trio.

Three coaches have been fired since the end of the season. The Jaguars dismissed Doug Pederson on Monday.

As for where the Raiders turn next, Mike Vrabel has been rumored as a possible candidate. He and Raiders minority owner Tom Brady were teammates with the Patriots, but Vrabel also figures to attract a lot of attention from other clubs with openings, including New England.

The Raiders have other pressing issues. Las Vegas needs a franchise quarterback, something Pierce did not have at his disposal. Aidan O’Connell has proven to be a capable starter but hasn’t shown he has the ability or consistency to take a team deep into the playoffs. —

But simply making the playoffs would be a major step forward for whoever gets the job. The Raiders’ most recent postseason appearance was three years ago; before that, they had advanced to the playoffs just once since losing in the Super Bowl after the 2002 season.

Pierce talked Monday about what he hoped was his future with the Raiders, saying any talk about his job status was “not inside the building.” He did acknowledge a sit-down was coming with owner Mark Davis and Telesco.

A coach speaking with reporters and then getting fired isn’t typical, but it’s not completely unheard of, either. Matt Eberflus met with the media earlier this season hours before the Chicago Bears fired him.

TITANS FIRE GM >> The Tennessee Titans fired general manager Ran Carthon on Tuesday after two seasons on the job and a 9-25 record.

The Titans introduced Carthon as the franchise’s first Black general manager and its 14th of all time in January 2023, and he helped the franchise hire a new coach in Brian Callahan a year later.

Tennessee controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk, who fired general manager Jon Robinson in December 2022, will have yet another new GM helping the franchise decide what to do with its fourth overall No. 1 pick in the NFL draft after going 3-14 in 2024. Strunk said Chad Brinker, president of football operations, will lead the search for a new GM.

Strunk said in a statement that it was impossible to ignore that the Titans didn’t improve over the last two years. She said Callahan would continue as head coach.

The Titans lost their final six games and eight of nine. The 14 losses matched the 2014 season for the most losses since the team relocated from Texas to Tennessee in 1997.

CHARGERS SIGN ELLIOTT >> Ezekiel Elliott was on the practice field for the Los Angeles Chargers on Tuesday, after the veteran running back was signed to the practice squad.

Elliott was released by the Dallas Cowboys on Dec. 31 so that he could possibly sign with a playoff team seeking an experienced running back.

The Chargers (11-6) are the No. 5 seed in the AFC and open the playoffs at Houston on Saturday in a wild-card round game.

This season in 15 games, Elliott had just 74 carries for 226 yards with a 3.1-yard-per-carry average, all career lows. The two-time NFL rushing champion has 9,130 yards and 74 rushing touchdowns in nine seasons.

How much Elliott can get up to speed leading up to Saturday remains to be seen.

J.K. Dobbins is the Chargers starting running back and provides a spark to their rushing attack. Dobbins, who missed four games with a knee injury, rushed for 905 yards with nine rushing touchdowns during the regular season.