Las Vegas Raiders: Jimmy Garoppolo ushers in new era
By Brad Weiss
The Las Vegas Raiders made it official with Jimmy Garoppolo this weekend, ushering in a new era of football for the Silver and Black.
For the past nine seasons, the Raiders franchise has been led at quarterback by veteran Derek Carr. The signal-caller won the starting job as a rookie after being a second-round pick from Fresno State back in 2014, and during his time with the team, he led the franchise to two playoff appearances, but zero victories in the postseason.
For many, Carr was seen as a compiler, someone who put up good numbers but could never win consistently. While his career record could support that, the truth is, Carr played on some horrible Raiders teams, and usually, the Silver and Black had one of the worst defenses in all of football.
During the 2022 NFL season, new head coach Josh McDaniels clearly was not on the same page as Carr, benching him towards the end of the year, and paving the way for the franchise to move on from him.
On Friday, Las Vegas officially turned the page from Carr, as Jimmy Garoppolo was announced as the new starting quarterback for the Silver and Black. Of course, it did take an extra day to get there, as Jimmy G was originally going to be announced on Thursday, making for a strange turn of events heading into the weekend.
However, everything got done, and now that Garoppolo is officially a member of the Raiders franchise, it ushers in a new era for the team.
Raiders still have the same issues with Jimmy G at quarterback
Garoppolo is known for two things, winning a lot of football games, and struggling to stay on the field. With Las Vegas, the hope is that he can bring a lot of winning to the franchise over the next three seasons, stay healthy, and help whichever young quarterback the team brings in to eventually take over for him develop.
The problem is, Las Vegas still has many of the same issues that plagued Carr, as they have questions along the offensive line, and the defense still needs significant upgrades this offseason. If general manager David Ziegler cannot get the job done in those two areas, it is hard to see the Raiders winning consistently in 2023.
The signing of Garoppolo was a solid one, as the team did not have to break the bank to get him, and if he stays healthy, he has proven he can win in the league. Garoppolo also has a different kind of swagger than Carr has, so you can expect him to take advantage of the bright lights in Las Vegas.