How will Gardner Minshew fare against a first-time NFL defensive coordinator?
Gardner Minshew will take the reins as the starting quarterback for the Las Vegas Raiders in 2024 with much to prove.
He won a tumultuous quarterback battle with Aidan O'Connell this preseason but will be operating under the assumption that he has a short leash to begin the year. Getting out to a hot start is crucial for both he and the team, and there is no better team to get going against than a division opponent.
While the Chargers do have a plethora of good players in their secondary like Asante Samuel Jr., Derwin James, and newly-added Kristian Fulton, they have a first-time playcaller as their defensive coordinator in Jesse Minter.
Minter joined the team this season after coaching under Harbaugh at the University of Michigan as the defensive coordinator. Obviously, that team had success and won a national championship at the college level, but the NFL is a different beast.
Sure, the Raiders have no film on Minter's schemes in the NFL, as he has only ever been a defensive backs coach at this level, but Minter does not have the depth of knowledge that Luke Getsy and the Raiders offense have to draw from.
Not to mention, the Chargers' secondary pieces are still inferior to the Raiders' offensive weapons: Davante Adams, Jakobi Meyers and Brock Bowers.
Hopefully, the wealth of experience that the Raiders have in their offensive room can spoil the NFL debut of Jesse Minter and his defense. If Minshew wants to get off on the right foot and build momentum for the season, he needs to pick apart this defense early and often.
Chargers writers think Minshew is one of the worst quarterbacks they'll face in 2024, and are somehow not scared of Aidan O'Connell as a backup either. As a reminder, O'Connell was the QB who ripped the Chargers' defense to shreds on Thursday Night Football last season, hanging 63 points on them, including 35 in the first half.
Chargers fans and media members seem to conveniently forget all about that game and ignore the fact that the Raiders have a quarterback who outperformed O'Connell in the preseason.
Let the Mania begin.