The Las Vegas Raiders decided against taking any big swings at quarterback this offseason and are entering the offseason with Gardner Minshew and Aidan O’Connell as the two vying for the starting job. It appears the Raiders are set to have a pure quarterback competition but there might be an early favorite.
Head coach Antonio Pierce had some very high praise for the work O’Connell is doing this offseason.
“What Aidan did the last four games, and what he’s done this offseason, changing his body, his work ethic, being here every day, blocking out the outside noise … I’m excited,” Pierce said during his May 10 press conference.
Pierce also revealed that O’Connell will be taking the initial first-team reps during offseason practices.
“I think it’s gonna be a process; we’re gonna stick to the process,” Pierce said of the quarterback competition. “But as I’ve said before, Aidan’s earned the right to go out there and get the first snap.”
This doesn’t necessarily mean that O’Connell is the favorite to start but he’s impressed the head coach enough to get the first look as the starter.
Tom Telesco Talks QB Competition
While O’Connell has an advantage due to the fact that he’s been with the Raiders for a year, the experience advantage goes to Minshew. He’s been in the NFL for five seasons and has started in 37 games.
According to general manager Tom Telesco, the Raiders are going into the quarterback competition with a completely open mind.
“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 said during the May 9 episode of “NFL Total Access.” “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.
“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 that opportunity, so to have both those guys here competing for the job, we’ll see how it goes.”
Who Will End up Starting at QB for Las Vegas Raiders?
With Minshew, the Raiders know what they’re getting with him. He’s proven he can be a capable starter. Last season, he started in 13 games and threw 15 touchdowns to nine interceptions. He also went 7-6 as a starter.
O’Connell provides a bit more upside as he’s only entering his second season. In two starts, he went 5-5 and threw 12 touchdowns to seven interceptions. His numbers were very similar to Minshew’s.
If O’Connell has shown a decent amount of improvement, he could have a real chance to win the starting quarterback job. The problem facing him is that the Raiders are paying Minshew $25 million across two seasons. If the competition is close, the fact the team is paying Minshew a decent chunk of money may lean them in the direction of starting him.
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