Antonio Pierce, the head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders, made the decision to switch quarterbacks after his team’s record dropped to 2-3 on the season following a 34-18 loss against the Denver Broncos. Pierce has already benched Gardner Minshew, the team’s preseason starter, twice this season in favour of Aidan O’Connell. The two previous times, though, the games were largely out of reach. After being chosen QB1 for the game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, O’Connell will be the star of the show in Week 6, while Minshew has been inconsistent throughout the season.
However, great power also comes with great responsibility, and Pierce has one expectation of his new starting quarterback.
As ESPN’s Paul Gutierrez reported, Pierce not only gave a precise response when questioned about O’Connell’s objective, but he reiterated it three times. Pierce commanded, “Take good care of the football.” “There are no mistakes. No mishandles. No mishandles.” Even though Pierce wasn’t making fun of Minshew in his remarks, the former starter’s turnovers were a clear problem. Minshew completed 70.7 percent of his throws through five games, but he also threw five interceptions and four touchdowns.
It should come as no surprise that the quarterback switch occurred during the drive just after Minshew threw an interception in both of the two games O’Connell started this season. During the third quarter of the Broncos game, O’Connell’s number was called. With just 94 yards and one interception on 10 of 20 throws, O’Connell had a difficult game against the Broncos. Though it ended in a 36-22 loss, his brief cameo against the Carolina Panthers went much more smoothly. In the fourth quarter, he took Minshew’s place and went 9 of 12 passing for 82 yards and a touchdown.
The Raiders selected O’Connell in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL Draft. He started ten games and played in eleven last season. As a starter, he had a 5-5 record with a completion percentage of 62.1% for 2,218 yards, 12 touchdowns, and 7 interceptions.
