NASHVILLE — The Tennessee Titans have completed a virtual interview with a handful of candidates for the team's head coach position and are expected to have another series of interviews in the coming days.

So far, Tennessee has expressed interest in 10 different coaches, each with a unique background and skillset. But there's a handful of them that the Titans would wise to avoid hiring.

Here's a look at Antonio Pierce, the Raiders interim head coach that I believe is the most overrated candidate of the coaches on Tennessee's short list.

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Antonio Pierce – Raiders Interim Head Coach

Antonio Pierce is former NFL linebacker that was signed as an undrafted rookie free agent by the Washington Redskins in 2001. After a nine-year NFL career that included one Pro Bowl selection, Pierce first got into coaching at the high school level in 2014.

After being named the head coach at Long Beach Poly High School, a national powerhouse for high school football in California, Pierce struggled to continue the program's legacy. In 2015, Long Beach Poly missed the playoffs for the first time in 36 years. In 2016 & 2017, the Jackrabbits fell short of double-digit wins (which had become the standard for the program) and was blown out in the state playoffs. Pierce then resigned and became the linebackers coach at Arizona State University.

Pierce would eventually get promoted to defensive coordinator for the Sun Devils for one season before resigning during an NCAA recruiting violation investigation. He was then hired as the linebackers coach for the Las Vegas Raiders by Josh McDaniels, a job which he did for a season and a half before being promoted to interim head coach when McDaniels was fired.

By all accounts, Pierce did a tremendous job as the interim head coach. Las Vegas went 5-4 to finish out the season after he took over. That record is including three different one-score losses to the Colts, Vikings, and Dolphins. 

There's no doubt that Pierce kept the Raiders playing competitive football through adversity this season. He also won over the locker room. Pierce has so much support from his players that star pass rusher Maxx Crosby threatened to request a trade if the Raiders didn't hire Pierce full-time.

But Pierce is still at the bottom of my list for the Titans, and quite frankly, I think he's the most overrated candidate in consideration. He has no experience calling a defense at the NFL level and the vast majority of his resumé has red flags. According to Justin Churchill of A to Z Sports Las Vegas, "Pierce's calling card isn't really Xs and Os, even though he can do that; it's the ability to lead men." But again, we're talking about a guy who had to resign because he couldn't win as a high school head coach and had his collegiate career cut short under shady circumstances. Pierce was even referred to as "the mastermind" behind ASU's NCAA infractions.

He's a defensive guy with no experience calling an NFL defense and unproven leadership. He might be the right fit in Vegas because of the relationships he has built there, but hiring Pierce would be a significant downgrade in Tennessee from what the Titans already had in Mike Vrabel. The Titans can, and should, do better.

Ranking all 10 Tennessee Titans head coach candidates

Every Titans head coach candidate ranked 1-10.