Regardless of how you feel about Derek Carr’s run with the Las Vegas Raiders, the team did its best to surround him with offensive talent. We can only assume Aidan O’Connell will get the same treatment, right?
Carr’s tenure will likely be a subject of debate for decades. Despite owning several team-passing records, the team itself experienced little success. However, Carr himself was never without solid supporting casts—the Raiders even executed a blockbuster trade for Davante Adams, giving him the NFL’s best wideout. As we all know, all of it was for naught after a run that lasted nearly a decade. In O’Connell, the team likely doesn’t exactly know what they have.
Following Josh McDaniels’ dismissal, interim head coach Antonio Pierce brought the rookie into the spotlight. What the Raiders got from O’Connell was a mixed bag. First, the Minnesota Vikings shut out the Raiders offense. Then, we have the performance against the Los Angeles Chargers, where the offense dropped 63 points.
So, now what?
2024 should be pivotal for both the Raiders and Aidan O’Connell
Unlike Carr, O’Connell comes into his second season with a formidable defense opposite him. You could argue that this Raiders defense will be the best in years. At the same time, this comes with a caveat. Just how patient can the Raiders afford to be with O’Connell when the window with such a defensive unit can only last so long?
In a perfect world, O’Connell would take at least a couple of years to develop. Unfortunately, the modern NFL simply doesn’t allow this—teams cannot afford to wait around; they need to win now. The Raiders are no exception, especially not in a year where all eyes will be on Pierce now that the interim title has been removed.
Raiders beat writer Vincent Bonsignore also elaborated all of this reply to a fan in his mailbag via the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
“This is the question of the season, and it’s incumbent on the Raiders to get it figured out. They can’t get to the end of the season without having a firm idea of what they have in O’Connell. Good or bad, whatever information they can get on him will help them shape their plan at quarterback.”
If you’re the Raiders, do you give O’Connell this year alone to prove himself? Also, we should note that all of this assumes Gardner Minshew won’t figure into the quarterback question either, which is unfair to the veteran signal-caller. Nonetheless, it’ll be fascinating to see how things play out for O’Connell and for Pierce—this will be a key season, and that’s putting it lightly.
*Top Photo: Getty Images
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