Las Vegas Raiders: Could Aidan O'Connell start as a rookie in 2023?

With the recent news about Jimmy Garoppolo becoming public, the Raiders should do the unthinkable and hand the reigns over to an unproven rookie in 2023.

First off, I want to start this piece by stating this will 100 percent not happen unless Jimmy Garoppolo and Brian Hoyer get hurt or are gone before the rubber hits the road in September. So to anyone on social media who just reads the article's headline and doesn't actually read the piece itself, the blame is placed on you for not reading the entire post.

With that said it's not surprising that this happened to the Silver and Black. They seemed to be cursed and almost anything that Josh McDaniels touches as a head coach turns into a problem. They thought that Garoppolo would be the answer and that may still be how things play out, but for the moment he would not be ready if the marathon started today.

Brian Hoyer was added for circumstances like this as insurance for an often-injured Garoppolo. He's 37 now and hasn't thrown many significant passes since 2017. He's a reliable name as a backup in the game, but how would the Raiders do with him as their starting quarterback when Garoppolo gets hurt again or isn't getting the job done?

Could the Las Vegas Raiders start Aidan O'Connell in Year 1?

Enter Aidan O'Connell. He's coming into the league as a two year starter and has a plethora of starting experience under his belt in the Big Ten. He worked his way up the totem pole as a Boilermaker and left there as its completion percentage and passing efficiency leader. Two traits are necessary ingredients to translate to success at the next level.

He also has the brain to compete and thrive in the pros. He stands alone in some categories with Drew Brees, I'm not saying he's the next Brees by any means, but being in the same statistical realm as Brees is something no one else has done at the school at the position. In 2021 he went on a roll that even Brees couldn't accomplish over a seven of eight game span.

Not to mention that he would have an all-pro to throw to, one possibly in the making at tight end, and one to hand off to. Fellow first-year guys like Bryce Young, C.J. Stroud, Anthony Richardson, and Will Levis don't even have anything close to that.

The only thing holding O'Connell back would be McDaniels not thinking he was ready to take his lumps yet or going in a different direction.

Nevertheless O'Connell should see the field a ton in the preseason and who knows, maybe he'll be the one, but that's some serious wishful thinking. Garoppolo has three months to get back into shape and everyone expects he will be or Vegas will be in some real trouble. If none of these gunslingers can get it done, then perhaps Tom Brady comes out of retirement again or Caleb Williams unites the fanbase as the man who takes Las Vegas to the places where Rich Gannon took the Raiders two decades ago.