Raiders vs Chargers 2023 Week 15: Studs and Duds

Stud – Raiders QB Aidan O’Connell 

Going in to the matchup with the Chargers, we expected things would be a bit easier for the Raiders offense than it was against the Minnesota Vikings. Minnesota has an elite scoring defense and Brian Flores is a wizard At confusing quarterbacks especially young ones and he had Aiden O'Connell in the torture chamber.

The Chargers defense on the other hand was being run by Brandon Staley and they currently have the worst scoring defense in the NFL and it definitely looked like it last week. O'Connell was able to dice up the Chargers defense and he had by far his best game of the season with four touchdowns in the first half. he was able to navigate the pocket well and delivered strike to all of his receivers.

The jury is still out on O'Connell as a potential long-term answer but he could go a long way towards earning the starting job next year with a win in Kansas City this week. from what we have seen so far, he is a confident and intelligent quarterback who has great short and medium range accuracy but definitely struggles under pressure. 

There was a few moments against the Chargers wear a more mobile quarterback would have picked up some easy yards or extended plays but that's just not something that O'Connell is capable of.  for now, we will focus on the positives and say that O'Connell has been a great surprise for the Raiders this year and at worst he is a solid backup for years to come.