The Las Vegas Raiders have had an intriguing offseason thus far, especially when we talk about the quarterback position. The media continues to overlook both Aidan O’Connell and Gardner Minshew, to the point of bordering on disrespect.
Well, at least one NFL insider is going as far as to say that the Raiders don’t currently have their quarterback of the future on the roster. If that were the case, are we really going to write off the Silver and Black before training camp? Doubtful.
Still, it’s an intriguing take by Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer.
“I also believe that the roster is a ways off, and the long-term quarterback for Pierce and first-year GM Tom Telesco isn’t on the roster, so there’s a pretty logical scenario out there where they become sellers at the deadline.”
Do the Raiders have their answer at quarterback?
One thing people need to keep in mind is that we’re currently in the “slow” phase of the offseason. We still have training camp, and the notion of writing off a team before a down of football is played is quite ludicrous. Even still, we’ve seen Raider Nation get its hopes up, year in and out, with little result to show for it—zero playoff wins since 2002.
In the grand scheme of things, it was always the Raiders’ defense’s responsibility to shape 2024. Yes, Raiders fans clamored to their wishes of seeing general manager Tom Telesco draft a new signal-caller. Unfortunately, winning the games that ultimately translated into Antonio Pierce getting the full-time head coaching gig also cost them a valuable draft position. Telesco faced competition from multiple QB-hungry teams, making the situation unfavorable. The Raiders had to settle for Brock Bowers—not a terrible consolation prize.
Regardless of how you feel about O’Connell or Minshew, it’s been a while since the national media cared so much about the Raiders and their upcoming camp battle (or lack thereof). In response to Breer’s statement, we must adopt a pragmatic approach. Say the Raiders get off to a tough start, which is plausible when you look at the schedule. What do we say, then?
Perhaps we should give Breer credit for knowing what some Raiders fans are afraid of—we’ll cross that bridge if it comes.
*Top Photo: Getty Images