A wise person once said, “When a child gets behind the wheel of a car and runs into a tree, you don’t blame the child. You blame the 30-year-old woman who got in the passenger seat and said, ‘Drive, kid. I trust you.'” There’s no chance Pam Beesly could have known her analogy for working for the Michael Scott Paper Company would apply to the Raiders quarterback situation in 2023. “The Office” parallels aside, Jimmy Garoppolo has Raider Nation feeling like the season is already a lost cause. But we can’t put the onus on the nine-year vet. This is about Josh McDaniels.
Jimmy G Was Placed In A Thankless Position With Raiders
Coach McDaniels wasted little time signing Garoppolo after the 49ers tossed him aside. The Raiders provided a home as the unquestioned starter, a spot Jimmy G hadn’t had in the last few seasons. This QB1 slot came with a caveat, though. No one will mistake the Eastern Illinois product for a true franchise player at the position, but Garoppolo was added to the fold due to his familiarity with McDaniels’ system.
Sure, a title contender was more than happy to lose him for nothing, but this is Josh’s Guy. Jimmy G, warts and all, will lead this offense because he understands what Josh wants. Even if the polarizing signal-caller somehow succeeded and proved his “winner” label was truly warranted, most would heap all the praise on McDaniels and his system.
McDaniels Must Salvage Garoppolo
As of this writing, Jimmy G will return for Monday Night’s matchup with the Green Bay Packers. That’s right, another chance to embarrass Raider Nation on national television with happy feet and lob interceptions in clean pockets! Outside of a single, late-game scramble reposted ad nauseam on X after Week 1, Garoppolo has only given lowlights. The last time we saw No. 10 on the field, he laid a Mother Goose-sized egg on Sunday Night Football against the Steelers. For the sake of all our sanity, we can only hope Week 5 brings a better showing.
But what if it doesn’t? What will be the discourse of the Raiders losing another tight matchup due to offensive ineptitude? Will the fan base blame the defense that was never properly invested in from a resource standpoint? Will the offensive line be maligned for not providing Dallas Cowboy-like protection? (Sidenote: Has Jermaine Eluemunor posted about being a top right tackle lately?) We certainly won’t hear about how a fourth-round rookie should’ve protected the ball better — looking at you, Josh McDaniels.
Jimmy Garoppolo, a quarterback constantly surrounded by great talent, coaching, and defense, was left naked in the wild when he inked his deal in Las Vegas. That should be the talking point. You don’t remove Tony Stark’s Iron Man Suit and then put him in a brawl with the Hulk. So, why would you place a talent-lacking, injury-prone quarterback behind a spotty offensive line and tell him to support a notoriously leaky defense?
Only one man should receive this question, but I doubt you’d get a sufficient answer in return.
*Top Photo: Heidi Fang/Las Vegas Review-Journal