The Las Vegas Raiders have gone through plenty of change this offseason. They’ve parted ways with former head coach Josh McDaniels midway through last season along with getting rid of general manager Dave Ziegler. Since then, the Raiders have retained interim head coach Antonio Pierce for the permanent head coaching role, and have hired Chargers GM and football executive Tom Telesco to replace Ziegler. Other notable Raiders additions and subtractions are Josh Jacobs leaving for Green Bay in free agency, the signing of Christian Wilkins from the Dolphins, and of course the drafting of players like Brock Bowers, and Jackson Powers-Johnson In the 2024 NFL Draft.
Las Vegas Raiders General Manager Addresses What The Team Will Do At The Quarterback Position
Even with all of the six quarterbacks that went off the board before Vegas. The Raiders decided not to pick a quarterback at all in the NFL draft, and general Tom Telesco explains why on Thursday’s edition of NFL Access. General Manager Tom Telesco explains that the team is comfortable with letting Gardner Minshew and Aidan O’Connell battle it out for the starting role.
“That’s the plan is to have both those guys really compete through the offseason program, but more so in training camp, and we’ll see how it plays out.”
Telesco also mentioned how he felt about O’Connell’s performance saying
“I thought Aidan did an excellent job last year in a really difficult situation where the head coach changed, the coordinator changed, and he played really good football down the stretch. I’ve had a chance to be around him a little bit more in the building and you kind of see the quarterback intangibles that are there, which is nice to have, that you have to have as a franchise quarterback.”
Then Tom goes on explaining how he feels about the addition of Gardner Minshew saying
“And then with Gardner, you know, Gardner played well last year with the Colts. I mean, he was in the Pro Bowl, so obviously had a pretty good year. He’s always performed at a high level when he’s given the opportunity, so to have both those guys here competing for the job, we’ll see how it goes.”
This Is The Right Move For The Las Vegas Raiders Going Forward To See Who Will Be Permanently Under Center
Once all of the best of the best quarterbacks were off the board, it only made sense for the Raiders to just stick with Minshew and O’Connell in 2024-25. Depending on how it goes, this will be the year where the Raiders figure out what to do at the quarterback position long term. Whether O’Connell takes the reigns and becomes the leader of this Raiders team, or Minshew mania runs wild in Vegas, both of these quarterbacks have to battle it out to see who’s capable of being the starting quarterback long term for this Raiders football team going forward. Last season, Minshew proved he’s capable of running an offense and keeping things on schedule.
The key for the veteran will be avoiding mistakes by not trying to do too much out on the field, which has hurt his starting chances in his five-year pro career. O’Connell on the other hand has showed some flashes with the ability to get the ball out on time, but also has experienced rookie struggles. Training camp will show how much the second-year pro has grown with a full offseason or whether his future is just being a backup. All we know for sure is that Aiden O’Connell has at least earned the right to get the first snap in the QB competition between the two.
