The Raiders’ hope this offseason has been to draft the quarterback of the future. That could easily still be the plan. But the Minshew move is an insurance policy if the team can’t get it done and it may be a sign that indicates the Raiders realize they will have a difficult time finding their immediate starter in this draft. They know it will be difficult to trade up for a top prospect and any of the quarterbacks available at No. 13 may not be ready to start right away.
Aidan O’Connell, who started 10 games as a rookie last season, is going to get a chance to compete for the starting job in training camp and in the preseason according to NFL Media. Now, if the Raiders get the right rookie, it won’t be good for O’Connell. But for now, he will get his shot to compete with Minshew at the very least.
Minshew is getting up to $25 million over two years with $15 million in guaranteed money. That’s basically low-end starter money. While even thing is fluid, there is certainly a chance Minshew will start for the Raiders in 2024 and he will get much more than the $3.5 million he was paid to be the backup in Indianapolis last year. He ended up starting 13 games as an injury replacement in 2023.
Raiders coach Antonio Pierce said this offseason that he doesn’t want to do the band-aid approach at the position (like last year with the ill-fated Jimmy Garoppolo signing). But, like face it; if Minshew starts, that’s exactly what this would be.
Minshew is solid. He plays well with a system and he can strike with some big plays. He has moxie and he is a team-first player. Teams can do worse than having Minshew playing for them. Yet, he is limited and not the type of a quarterback that can put a team on his back and that’s what the Raiders are looking for. But the same could be said for O’Connell. So, (barring a big draft get) there is a chance the Raiders will be looking for another quarterback in the next offseason or two.
In the moments before the Minshew agreement was reported, there were reports that the Raiders were considering trading for Justin Fields from Chicago. Yet, they opted for Minshew. They could have had made a much bigger play for Kirk Cousins or a cheaper one for Russell Wilson. Yet, they went with Minshew and now we wait until April and then training camp to see if he will be the starter once September rolls around.
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