The Las Vegas Raiders weren't able to land a quarterback in the draft so they'll be relying on Gardner Minshew or Aidan O'Connell to start this season. Minshew seemed to have the edge at first due to the fact that he got a two-year, $25 million contract, but O'Connell is gaining a lot of momentum.
What will only help him is that Davante Adams appears to be on his side. Adams gave some telling insight into how the quarterback competition is going.
“I think right now if I had to say, I think Aidan has the job,” Adams said on a recent episode of “Speak.” “At the end of the day, I don’t have a preference other than the fact that I want somebody that’s confident and ready to go when it’s time to do it. So, whoever that is, that’s who I want throwing the ball.
“We still gotta keep working and do what we’ve got to do to grow and get better. We can definitely get better than where we are. … Even me, at this point in the year this is not where you are gonna show your best. So throughout camp when we really start throwing the pads on, and doing the real deal, I think that’s when we’ll be able to decide who the guy will be, and I’ll continue working to get that camaraderie with that person.”
Now, it's important to note that the Raiders haven't even practiced in pads yet. Nobody really has a clear idea of who has the edge in the quarterback race. If it's close, it seems like O'Connell will get the edge due to his familiarity with the team.
However, Minshew cannot be counted out yet. He's played many more games than O'Connell and he's a gritty player. He's not going to go down without a fight.