The Las Vegas Raiders made a decision to upgrade the quarterback room this offseason. They swapped out Gardner Minshew for Geno Smith and drafted a promising young quarterback, Cam Miller, in the sixth round of the 2025 NFL Draft.
Aidan O'Connell was the lone holdover of the group, and he is projected to be the team's No. 2 quarterback once again despite the new regime initially looking to trade him. A strong game by Miller in the Raiders' first preseason contest, however, has Raider Nation ready to dish O'Connell again.
While the Tennessee Titans seemed like a contender to trade for O'Connell, given their troubles behind Cam Ward, they nabbed veteran Trevor Siemian earlier in the week. Now, however, another AFC team finds itself in need of a solid backup, and the Raiders could easily strike a deal.
Raiders should trade Aidan O'Connell to Jets after Tyrod Taylor injury
On Tuesday, ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter reported that Tyrod Taylor, the New York Jets' backup quarterback, would undergo knee surgery and miss the remainder of the preseason. His status for the season opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers is now in question.
Given that Taylor is already 36 years old and has only started five games in the last three seasons, he was already a shaky backup to begin with. He has only been a starter in three NFL seasons, the last of which came in 2017 with the Buffalo Bills.
O'Connell is solid enough to be a high-end backup in New York right away, and the Jets badly need this behind Justin Fields, who is already unproven himself. Fields also got hurt during a training camp practice earlier this offseason, and they have nobody promising behind him or Taylor.
RELATED: Ashton Jeanty’s preseason flop just handed Raiders fans fantasy gold
New York also has ample draft capital to make a move happen, as they own four sixth-round picks in the 2026 NFL Draft. This would be more than enough compensation for O'Connell, a former fourth-rounder, who has appeared in 20 games and started 17 since joining the league in 2023.
Neither Adrian Martinez nor Brady Cook is a worthwhile project for new head coach Aaron Glenn and the Jets, so they could find the next-best thing in O'Connell. He has never lit the world on fire in the NFL, but most of the time, he won't make enough mistakes to kill your chances of winning.
With Fields, Taylor, Martinez and Cook as the quarterback room, the Jets likely needed to search for an upgrade anyway. However, Taylor's injury makes their need that much more pressing, and the Raiders could capitalize by getting draft capital in return.