AIDAN O'CONNELL NEWS

Moves to IR The Raiders placed O'Connell (thumb) on injured reserve Tuesday.

Impact According to Vic Tafur of The Athletic, O'Connell is likely to miss 4-to-6 weeks while he recovers from a broken thumb on his throwing hand. The Raiders haven't revealed whether O'Connell will require surgery to address the injury, but in his upcoming absence, Gardner Minshew will step back into the starting role. The Raiders signed Desmond Ridder off the Cardinals' practice squad to provide a depth option behind Minshew.

OCTOBER 22 • ROTOWIRE

Raiders QB Aidan O'Connell reportedly fractures thumb, will miss 4-6 weeks

The Raiders will be without their starting quarterback for a bit. Aidan O'Connell reportedly fractured his thumb in Sunday's loss to the Ram...

OCTOBER 21

Expected to land on IR The Raiders are expected to place O'Connell on IR due to a fractured thumb sustained during Sunday's 20-15 loss to the Rams, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

Impact O'Connell is believed to be dealing with a 4-to-6 week recovery timetable, a development which puts Gardner Minshew back in position to start under center for Las Vegas. In his lone full start this season, O'Connell completed 27 of 40 pass attempts for 227 yards, one touchdown and one interception Week 6 versus the Steelers. Across four appearances on the whole, O'Connell has thrown for 455 yards, two touchdowns and two INTs. Adam Schefter of ESPN reports that O'Connell will seek a second opinion Monday to confirm the severity of his injury.

OCTOBER 21 • ROTOWIRE

Expected to land on IR The Raiders are expected to place O'Connell on IR due to a fractured thumb sustained during Sunday's 20-15 loss to the Rams, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

Impact O'Connell could be sidelined up to six weeks, a development which puts Gardner Minshew back under center for Las Vegas. In his lone full start this season, O'Connell completed 27 of 40 pass attempts for 227 yards, one touchdown and one interception in Week 6 versus the Steelers. Across four appearances on the whole, O'Connell has thrown for 455 yards, two touchdowns and two INTs. Adam Schefter of ESPN reports that O'Connell will seek a second opinion Monday to confirm the severity of his injury.

OCTOBER 21 • ROTOWIRE

May have broken thumb Based on preliminary tests, O'Connell is believed to have sustained a broken thumb during Sunday's game against the Rams, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

Impact Per the report, O'Connell will undergo further evaluation Monday to determine the extent of his thumb injury. If he ends up missing time beyond Sunday, Gardner Minshew would be in line to reclaim the Raiders' starting QB job.

OCTOBER 20 • ROTOWIRE

Hurst thumb Sunday O'Connell exited Sunday's game against the Rams after suffering a thumb injury.

Impact O'Connell had completed six of his 10 pass attempts for 52 yards prior to leaving the contest. In his absence, Gardner Minshew is in at QB for the Raiders.

OCTOBER 20 • ROTOWIRE

Mediocre in first start of 2024 O'Connell completed 27 of 40 passes for 227 yards, one touchdown and one interception in Sunday's 32-13 loss to the Steelers.

Impact O'Connell took over as the Raiders' starting quarterback and faced a tough test against the Pittsburgh defense. He got off to a hot start by leading Las Vegas to a touchdown on the team's opening possession, and he went 4-for-4 for 45 yards while working primarily in short areas of the field. While O'Connell remained accurate throughout the game, he was hesitant to push the ball downfield and had only one completion of more than 20 yards. Assuming he stays under center in Week 7 against the Rams, O'Connell could be a bit more aggressive, though expectations should remain in check.

OCTOBER 14 • ROTOWIRE

Mediocre in first start of 2024 O'Connell completed 27 of 40 passes for 227 yards, one touchdown and one interception in Sunday's 32-13 loss to the Steelers.

Impact O'Connell took over as the Raiders' starting quarterback and faced a tough test against the Pittsburgh defense. He got off to a hot start by leading Las Vegas to a touchdown on the team's opening possession, and he went 4-for-4 for 45 yards while working primarily in short areas of the field. While O'Connell remained accurate throughout the game, he was hesitant to push the ball downfield and had only one completion of more than 20 yards. Assuming he stays under center in Week 7 against the Rams, O'Connell could be a bit more aggressive, though expectations should remain in check.

OCTOBER 14 • ROTOWIRE

Antonio Pierce names Aidan O'Connell starting Raiders QB, benching Gardner Minshew

Head coach Antonio Pierce has once-again named Aidan O’Connell as the Raiders starting quarterback ahead of Las Vegas' matchup with the Stee...

OCTOBER 9

Taking over starting job O'Connell is replacing Gardner Minshew as the Raiders' starting quarterback this week, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

Impact Minshew is being demoted to the backup role after starting the first five games of the season. Coach Antonio Pierce said he doesn't anticipate going back to Minshew, but Pierce did leave the door open to make another change if he eventually feels one is needed, per Paul Gutierrez of ESPN.com. O'Connell will face the Steelers this Sunday.

OCTOBER 9 • ROTOWIRE

Enters in relief again O'Connell completed 10 of 20 passes for 93 yards, no touchdowns and one interception in Sunday's 34-18 loss to the Broncos.

Impact For the second time in the last three games, O'Connell replaced Gardner Minshew. O'Connell took over late in the third quarter and led four uneven possessions. He did lead a touchdown drive, during which he went 8-for-11 for 79 yards, though it came in garbage time and he rarely pushed the ball down the field. O'Connell also threw an interception and had a three-and-out. Despite O'Connell's ineffectiveness, coach Antonio Pierce declined to name a starter for a Week 6 matchup against the Steelers, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.

OCTOBER 7 • ROTOWIRE

Raiders will reportedly stick with Gardner Minshew over Aidan O'Connell at QB

Antonio Pierce said the Raiders needed to “evaluate everything" after a loss to Carolina.

SEPTEMBER 24

Will remain No. 2 option O'Connell will remain the backup option under center for the Raiders for the team's Week 4 matchup with the Browns, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

Impact Head coach Antonio Pierce raised some eyebrows Monday when he hinted that a quarterback change could be on the horizon. However, it did not take long for Gardner Minshew to get the nod for another start. Still, it looks like he is on a short leash as of now, meaning O'Connell could get the call at any point should Minshew struggle. The second-year signal caller looked solid in garbage time Sunday, completing nine of 12 passes for 82 yards and one touchdown late in the fourth quarter.

SEPTEMBER 24 • ROTOWIRE

In line to remain No. 2 option O'Connell is slated to remain the backup option under center for the Raiders for the team's Week 4 matchup with the Browns, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

Impact Head coach Antonio Pierce raised some eyebrows Monday when he hinted that a quarterback change could be on the horizon. However, Gardner Minshew is poised to get the nod for another start. Still, it looks like he's on a short leash as of now, meaning O'Connell could get the call at any point should Minshew struggle. The second-year signal-caller looked solid in garbage time Sunday, completing nine of 12 passes for 82 yards and one touchdown late in the fourth quarter.

SEPTEMBER 24 • ROTOWIRE

Quarterback change may be coming Raiders coach Antonio Pierce said Monday he hasn't ruled out O'Connell, who entered late during Sunday's 36-22 loss to the Panthers, starting over Gardner Minshew versus the Browns...

Impact O'Connell looked solid in garbage time Sunday, completing nine of 12 passes for 82 yards and one touchdown late in the fourth quarter, and with Carolina having already firmly secured a win and focused on running out the clock. Still, with Minshew only compiling 214 passing yards, one touchdown and one interception in roughly three and a half quarters of play, it sounds like the Raiders will reevaluate things under center. Pierce said Las Vegas was "just trying to look for a spark" by having O'Connell enter Sunday's game, per Tashan Reed of The Athletic.

SEPTEMBER 23 • ROTOWIRE

Quarterback change may be coming Raiders coach Antonio Pierce said Monday he hasn't ruled out O'Connell, who entered late during Sunday's 36-22 loss to the Panthers, starting over Gardner Minshew versus the Browns...

Impact O'Connell looked solid in garbage time Sunday, completing nine of 12 passes for 82 yards and one touchdown late in the fourth quarter with Carolina having already firmly secured a win and focused on running out the clock. Still, with Minshew compiling only 214 passing yards, one touchdown and one interception in roughly three and a half quarters of play, it sounds like the Raiders will evaluate things under center. Pierce said Las Vegas was "just trying to look for a spark" by having O'Connell enter Sunday's game, per Tashan Reed of The Athletic.

SEPTEMBER 23 • ROTOWIRE

Won't play Friday Coach Antonio Pierce said Wednesday that O'Connell won't play in Friday's preseason game against the 49ers, Paul Gutierrez of ESPN.com reports.

Impact Neither will Gardner Minshew, who was named the Week 1 starter Sunday. O'Connell will enter the regular season as the Raiders' No. 2 quarterback, after completing 21 of 29 passes for 176 yards, one TD and one INT in two preseason appearances.

AUGUST 22 • ROTOWIRE

Loses out on starting job Raiders coach Antonio Pierce announced Sunday that Gardner Minshew will be the team's starting quarterback over O'Connell to begin the 2024 season, Paul Gutierrez of ESPN.com repor...

Impact Pierce added during Sunday morning's press conference that experience was ultimately the deciding factor, stating that the team "feels like [Minshew] gives us the best opportunity to get off to a fast start," according to Tashan Reed and Vic Tafur of The Athletic. O'Connell has more experience with the Raiders, starting 10 games with a 5-5 record and a 12:7 TD:INT ratio during his 2023 rookie season. But, that falls short of the 37 career starts for Minshew, who was also named to his first career Pro Bowl with the Colts last year. It was cearly still a tight race for the job this preseason. O'Connell performed relatively well while coming in off the bench in the first two exhibitions, completing 21 of 29 combined passing attempts for 176 yards and one touchdown an one interception. It's also not out of the question that O'Connell could still have a chance to start this season if Minshew and the Raiders' offense strulgge throughout the campaign. Therefore, it will be worth monitoring how the team perfoms in the regular-season opener versus the Chargers on Sept. 8.

AUGUST 18 • ROTOWIRE

Raiders name Gardner Minshew starting QB over Aidan O'Connell

Veteran Gardner Minshew will be the Las Vegas Raiders’ starting quarterback going into the season, coach Antonio Pierce said Sunday, beating...

AUGUST 18

Tosses TD pass Saturday O'Connell completed 14 of 20 passes for 96 yards with a touchdown and an interception in the Raiders' 27-12 preseason loss to the Cowboys on Saturday night.

Impact O'Connell had his opportunity after Gardner Minshew led the first five drives for Las Vegas, and the two players finished with very similar numbers. O'Connell's middling 4.8 yards per attempt was marginally better than Minshew's 4.5, although the former did stand out with a five yard-touchdown toss to Harrison Bryant. However, O'Connell also subsequently saw a throw intended for Bryant returned for a pick-six on the first play of the fourth quarter, putting a damper on his overall performance. The competition between the two quarterbacks seemingly remains very close, with a decision from head coach Antonio Pierce potentially coming before Friday's preseason finale against the 49ers.

AUGUST 18 • ROTOWIRE

Las Vegas nearing QB1 decision Raiders coach Antonio Pierce said Sunday that he plans to name a starting quarterback between O'Connell and Gardner Minshew after Saturday's preseason game versus Dallas, Paul Guti...

Impact Pierce also said that O'Connell and Minshew are both slated to play at least one quarter during this exhibition with the Cowboys, which is in line with the playing time that they got during Saturday's 24-23 loss to Minnesota. O'Connell did ultimately start versus the Vikings, but he's been splitting first-team practice reps throughout training camp and appears to be on even footing with Minshew following this preseason opener. O'Connell was solid during his 11 regular-season appearances as a rookie last year, and he completed seven of nine passing attempts for 76 yards during his lone offensive series against Minnesota. He'll also have a chance to separate himself during a week of practices before getting to Saturday's game against Dallas.

AUGUST 11 • ROTOWIRE

Sharp in preseason loss O'Connell completed seven of nine passes for 76 yards in Saturday's 24-23 preseason loss to the Vikings.

Impact The second-year QB was expected to see about a quarter of action in the Raiders' preseason opener, but O'Connell wound up being under center for only a single possession as he led Las Vegas on a nearly eight-minute drive that ended in a first-quarter field goal. Gardner Minshew then took over to begin the second quarter and engineered three quick scoring drives before halftime, including two touchdowns. While O'Connell getting the start might suggest he's ahead in the battle to be the Week 1 starter, Minshew had a lot more success putting points on the board. The competition will likely continue into next Saturday's clash with the Cowboys.

AUGUST 11 • ROTOWIRE

Set to play a quarter Saturday Coach Antonio Pierce noted Monday that he expects both O'Connell and Gardner Minshew to play "a legit quarter" in Saturday's preseason opener against the Vikings, Kevin Patra of N...

Impact In terms of Saturday's contest, Pierce wouldn't announce a starter, suggesting that each QB would get a similar level of opportunity to make their case for depth chart slotting. "Who goes out first and who goes out second really doesn't matter. (They will) get hopefully an equal amount of snaps and opportunity to showcase," according to Pierce, who also indicated Monday via Paul Gutierrez of ESPN.com, that he doesn't "think we can sit there and say somebody's won yet."

AUGUST 5 • ROTOWIRE

2024-25 NFL odds: Aidan O'Connell now favored to start for Raiders

Gardner Minshew is there. But did a recent endorsement from Davante Adams sway the odds in O'Connell's favor over the veteran? Check out the...

JULY 31

Raiders boast two standout TEs, look for one solid QB to emerge

New Raiders GM Tom Telesco assesses the team's QB situation and explains why TEs Brock Bowers and Michael Mayer will help them develop.

JULY 30