Aiden O’Connell Will Likely Have Chance To Compete For Raiders Starting QB Job In 2024
The Las Vegas Raiders are one of the many NFL teams that should be looking for a quarterback this off-season. The Jimmy Garoppolo experiment ended up being an abject failure, and all signs point to the two sides parting ways before the 2024 campaign. But the options that the team has on the open market could prove to be thin, and incumbent starter Aiden O’Connell will likely get the chance to compete for a starting job against whoever the team chooses to bring in.
Top takeaways from speaking with Antonio Pierce at the NFL Combine:
– The QB job is still Aidan O’Connell’s to lose, believes he will handle the competition well.
– Wants to bolster secondary/trenches in the draft, free agency.
– More players are spending time in the facility… pic.twitter.com/4P8M2lHHLa
— Levi Edwards (@theleviedwards) February 28, 2024
O’Connell wasn’t bad during his rookie season. In relief of Garoppolo, he started 10 games to close out the year, and was able to post an eve 5-5 record. He threw 12 touchdowns to 7 interceptions, a number that certainly needs to be cleaned up, but there were signs that pointed to the young signal caller having a chance to becoming a full-time starter in the league.
The odds are, he’ll get the chance as soon as the upcoming season. While the Raiders will do what they can to get their hands on either one of the top draft prospects or legit veteran free agents, their options may be limited. They have the 13th overall pick in the upcoming draft, which is too far down the board to even dream of grabbing one of the highly-touted quarterbacks, though they have plenty of draft capital if they care to execute a trade this year.
Las Vegas Currently Has 4 QBs On The Roster
Raiders’ GM Tom Telesco on two of the most important traits his ideal quarterback must have:
“Leadership and toughness.”
(Via @Raiders) #RaiderNation | #NFLCombine pic.twitter.com/XLCnjeMvM2
— Vegas Sports Today (@VegasSportsTD) February 27, 2024
The options on the free agent market aren’t the most attractive, either. They will almost certainly make a play at Kirk Cousins, though there are more rumors leading to his return to Minnesota or the possibility of him heading to Atlanta than there is anything about the Raiders. And while there are some solid veterans on the list of available QBs, it is unlikely that they, or anyone, view Ryan Tannehill, Jacoby Brissett, or Sam Darnold to be starter-worthy at the time being.
The team currently has four quarterbacks under contract, but the futures of Garoppolo, Brian Hoyer, and Anthony Brown with the team are in serious question. Las Vegas will save over $24 million when they release Garoppolo after the June 1st designation.
