The Las Vegas Raiders have entered the Antonio Pierce era, as the team promoted him to full-time head coach after an interim stint in the second half of the 2023 season. To help mold the team in Pierce's image, the Raiders hired Tom Telesco, formerly of the Los Angeles Chargers, as general manager. With that, the duo had their first offseason, and one of the big question marks surrounding the team was at quarterback.
The Raiders released Jimmy Garoppolo one year after signing him to a three-year deal. Remaining on the team was Aidan O'Connell, who took over after Garoppolo was benched. The Raiders' big free agent signing was Gardner Minshew, who started in place of an injured Anthony Richardson last year, and was one win away from taking the Indianapolis Colts to the playoffs. The Raiders gave Minshew a two-year, $25 million deal.
So this offseason, the Raiders are holding a quarterback competition. With that, fans are wondering who holds the edge -- O'Connell, who led the team to five wins in 10 starts, or Minshew, who was named to the Pro Bowl for the first time of his career last season.
While appearing on ESPN's "SportsCenter," insider Jeremy Fowler revealed that O'Connell is the one who is holding the early edge in the quarterback competition.
"O'Connell probably has the slight edge right now, based on coming into Year 2 being more vocal. I'm told he's acting like a starting quarterback and Davante Adams loves him, which always helps with the brownie points," said Fowler.
It is really early in the process before Pierce makes the final decision, but O'Connell is making an impression. One of the biggest impressions he has made is on Adams, their No. 1 receiver and one of the best players at his position in the NFL.
But that's not to say Minshew is not impressing the Raiders. Fowler says that the two were going "tit-for-tat" during organized team activities. Not only that, but Minshew was changing plays at the line of scrimmage. Fowler says he expects O'Connell and Minshew to start preseason games this summer.
Some Raiders beat reporters noted that the O'Connell vs. Minshew battle was far from perfect, with both struggling pushing the ball downfield.
Last year after taking over for Garoppolo, O'Connell threw for 2,218 yards, 12 touchdowns and seven interceptions while completing 62.1 percent of his passes. One of O'Connell's five wins as a starter came against the Kansas City Chiefs.
As for Minshew, he threw for 3,305 yards, 15 touchdowns, and nine interceptions while completing 62.2 percent of his passes. In 13 starts, Minshew led the Colts to a 7-6 record.
The final decision to see who will be the team's Week 1 starter will be made by Pierce. This early in the process, O'Connell does hold a slight lead. However, there's still a lot of time left for Minshew to take the lead.
