The Las Vegas Raiders are one of the few teams in the NFL that are actually having a quarterback competition. The participants are no other than Aidan O’Connell who’s going into year number two and relaible veteran Gardner Minshew.
Las Vegas Raiders GM Tom Telesco previews QB competition between Aidan O'Connell, Gardner Minshew: "We'll see how it plays out"
QB SHOWDOWN pic.twitter.com/Zq4xCtZtJS
— NFL Rumors (@nflrums) May 10, 2024
After going through OTA’s you could see O’Connell becoming more of a vocal leader in the offense and getting more comfortable with his teammates. You could see the wide receivers get to develop a rapport despite the Raiders defense making is very difficult for the offense to obtain a rhythm through OTA’s. Added confidence is huge for a young quarterback and your teammates believing in you as their leader is even bigger.
The new guy
Minshew is the new guy on the block. He’s learning a new team and system coming over from the Indianapolis Colts. Last season Minshew filled in for first round draft pick Anthony Richardson when he got injured and almost led the Colts to the playoffs. You could see Minshew gaining a better grip on the playbook as camp has went on. Building more confidence within his teammates and himself, Minshew started to even call more audibles during plays. Even though Minshew is playing catch up and slightly trails O’Connell in this early QB competition, his added confidence and familiarity with the playbook could propel him into overtaking the starting job when decision days comes. I wouldn’t be surprised if this competition goes into the preseason. This battle is far from over.
“I think that because Gardner is used to coming off of the bench, you know, that has sort of been his career – they may give the young kid Aidan O’Connell has a chance first to go out there and see what he can do for a couple of games,” Tim Brown said during the Zach Gelb Show. “If he can’t handle it, they know what they have in Gardner and they will go with him. So, that’s what I see, but I have no idea what they’re going to do for sure.”
https://dicecitysports.com/2024/06/16/raiders-offense-is-playing-catch-up/
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