4 backup plans for Raiders after Russell Wilson signs with Steelers
By Ryan Heckman
Monday morning, the NFL free agency madness officially begins for the Las Vegas Raiders and the rest of the NFL.
One of the bigger moves we saw take place prior to the official start of free agency was when quarterback Russell Wilson opted to sign with the Pittsburgh Steelers. This came just a few days after it was reported Wilson was being coached to sign with Las Vegas.
Now, the Raiders have one major option off the board. Some fans might be glad to see Wilson sign elsewhere. Regardless of your thoughts on Wilson, we now turn our attention to other quarterback options for the Raiders.
What are they? Let's dig into four specific routes the Raiders could go.
Sign a remaining free agent like Sam Darnold or Gardner Minshew
Kirk Cousins is obviously the biggest name the Raiders could target, but it seems to be down to the Minnesota Vikings and Atlanta Falcons in that sweepstakes. The Raiders would then be left with, well, not much in terms of free agent options.
Two of the better options they could choose from are either Sam Darnold or Gardner Minshew. Darnold spent last season as a backup for the San Francisco 49ers, learning under Kyle Shanahan, which is a positive spin on Darnold's otherwise downward career trend.
Minshew, meanwhile, became the full-time starter for the Colts after Anthony Richardson went down to injury. He led the Colts within one game of a playoff berth, and he's a whole lot of fun to watch, at the very least.
Other free agent options include guys like Jacoby Brissett, Drew Lock, Ryan Tannehill, Tyrod Taylor, Joe Flacco, Tyler Huntley, Teddy Bridgewater and Joshua Dobbs.
If free agency isn't the best option, Las Vegas has additional routes they can go.