Maxx Crosby talked about the doubters this week and said he and his teammates “love hearing that sh–” when people talk about the Raiders being “trash.”

Going back long before Crosby was with the team, the Raiders have always been a lightning rod for criticism, and this week an ESPN report gave Crosby a little more of what he likes.

ESPN’s Ben Solak wrote a column on Thursday ranking the NFL’s coaching staffs, and maybe not surprisingly, he ranked the Raiders as the worst in the NFL.

This was Solak’s explanation for placing the Raiders’ coaching staff at the very bottom…

“I want to be very clear: I like Patrick Graham. Check my Patrick Graham receipts. I’m in on Graham.

But some team has to be 32 out of 32, even if there’s reason for optimism, and that unfortunate title falls on the Raiders. I’m always suspicious of interim-to-head coach promotions. The best success story for an interim promotion in the past 20 years is former Cowboys coach Jason Garrett. Do you really want to be angling for a Jason Garrett arc?

And that’s before you look at Pierce’s profile. Five years ago, Pierce was the linebackers coach for Arizona State. I don’t mind a fast riser at all, but I do think NFL experience — just spending time on a lot of staffs with a lot of players — gives coaches the long view and steady hand necessary to run a franchise. It’s not that being a long-tenured NFL coach makes you good; it’s that even the naturally good coaches need to learn lessons from experience over time. Pierce has yet to accrue those years at the mast.

The Raiders were plucky under Pierce last year — they went 5-4 after he took over — but the interim often enjoys an unsustainable emotional boost. It’s fun playing for a beloved positional coach or coordinator for a few weeks after the former, often disliked head coach is ousted. But that buff is only temporary, and Pierce is well beyond it now

They tried to give Pierce some handrails on his towering ascent, hiring Marvin Lewis as an assistant head coach. But the inexperience at offensive coordinator worries me — Luke Getsy had two failed years of building around Justin Fields in Chicago before he joined this staff, and the Bears’ offenses of the past few seasons were maddeningly sloppy on the field.

If Pierce can ride the ups-and-downs and grow on the job, I can see him being a good head coach in a few years — a CEO with a strong culture, like Campbell or Tomlin. But that’s a rosy, distant future. My expectations this season are low.“

There is a strong expectation that the Raiders will have one of the better defenses in the league this year, but it will be interesting to see how the offense responds in its first year under offensive coordinator Luke Getsy.

There was a hope within the organization that Aidan O’Connell would seize the starting job at quarterback, but the preseason played out in a way that made the decision difficult for Pierce and GM Tom Telesco.

Minshew ended up being named the starting quarterback on Sunday and it would appear from the outside that he essentially backed into the job. Nevertheless, Pierce gave Minshew a strong endorsement when he announced the decision, and it will be interesting to see how the offense responds to one of the most unique quarterbacks in the league.

With so many questions around the offensive line, some have suggested Minshew might have gotten the job because of his ability to improvise when plays break down. With Khalil Mack and Joey Bosa waiting for the Raiders in week one, the idea does make a little sense.

x: @raidersbeat