No matter if the Pittsburgh Steelers start Justin Fields or Russell Wilson this weekend, the Las Vegas Raiders are ready. Preparing for Wilson is no different than last season when his Denver Broncos twice played the Raiders. And the team is turning to offensive coordinator Luke Getsy, the Chicago Bears’ OC last season, for intel on Fields. Speaking to the media Wednesday via the Raiders’ YouTube channel, head coach Antonio Pierce didn’t try to hide that fact.
“Our staff did that right away,” Pierce said when asked if they picked Getsy’s brain for information. “We’ve got Gerald Alexander, Robert Spillane. We’ve got some guys that are familiar with Pittsburgh. Whatever intel we have inside the building that we can share is better for us.”
Getsy served as the Bears’ coordinator for two of Fields’ three years in Chicago, 2022 and 2023. Though the pairing wasn’t successful, and the relationship seemed testy in moments, Getsy still knows Fields well. What he likes, what he doesn’t like, what coverages he reads better than others.
As Pierce notes, Getsy isn’t the only well the team can tap. Alexander served as an assistant secondary coach for the Steelers the previous two seasons before being hired by the Raiders as their lead safeties coach in 2024. And Spillane emerged at linebacker with Pittsburgh before signing with the Raiders ahead of the 2023 season. There’s a solid knowledge base on what Pittsburgh will want to do.
In the NFL, any edge a team can gain, any nugget of information from those who were in the opponent’s building, can help. It won’t be the reason for whatever outcome takes place, but it’ll allow the Raiders to come up with the most comprehensive game plan possible.
There aren’t as many “insiders” who were around Wilson. But he’s a known face to the AFC West.
“The good part is we’ve gone up against Russell a few times now,” Pierce said. “We’re familiar with him as well.”
Wilson made one start against the Raiders last season, the 2023 opener. He threw for 177 yards, two touchdowns, and no interceptions while being sacked twice as Las Vegas squeaked out a 17-16 win. By their second meeting in the season finale, Wilson had been benched as the Broncos turned the page. Pierce wasn’t the head coach for the opener but served as the team’s linebackers coach, part of the defensive staff that game planned to limit Wilson’s impact in the game.
Pierce noted that he isn’t too caught up in Wilson’s time with Denver, knowing the Steelers have their own system and different offense. Still, he’s listening for any information he can gather, including Mike Tomlin’s weekly meeting.
“Listening to Mike Tomlin’s presser, how many reps does he get? Who is the hot hand? That’s not really my job,” Pierce said. “We just gotta do the best job we can to make sure we don’t make mistakes to give them opportunities as well.”
It’s likely that Fields will get the nod for this game though some insiders believe it’ll be his last start. Either way, the Raiders will feel as prepared as anyone to hand the Steelers their third-straight loss.
