Raiders GM Tim Telesco: Gardner Minshew, Aidan O’Connell will compete for starting QB

All the analysts assumed the Raiders would nab one of the elite quarterbacks in the first round of last month’s NFL Draft. Blame the Falcons or blame the football fates, because the QB didn’t happen.

Instead, the Raiders selected all-everything Georgia tight end Brock Bowers. The guy throwing him the ball this fall likely will be either Gardner Minshew or Aidan O’Connell. Those are the quarterbacks Vegas has on its roster as the team heads into phase 3 of OTAs. And that’s OK with Raiders general manager Tom Telesco.

The Vegas GM did an interview with NFL Network earlier this week and provided details into this looming quarterback competition.

“That’s the plan is to have both those guys really compete through the offseason program, but more so in training camp,” Telesco said. “And we’ll see how it plays out. I thought Aidan did an excellent job last year in a really difficult situation where the head coach changed, the coordinator changed, and he played really good football down the stretch. I’ve had a chance to be around him a little bit more in the building and you kind of see the quarterback intangibles that are there, which is nice to have, that you have to have as a franchise quarterback.”

The Raiders signed Minshew as a free agent. He played for the Colts last fall, filling in admirably when rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson suffered a season-ending shoulder injury. In fact, he even earned his first Pro Bowl berth.

“And then with Gardner, you know, Gardner played well last year with the Colts,” Telesco said. “I mean, he was in the Pro Bowl, so obviously had a pretty good year. He’s always performed at a high level when he’s given that opportunity. So to have both those guys here competing for the job, we’ll see how it goes.”

The Raiders selected O’Connell in the fourth round of last year’s draft. They’d also signed Jimmy Garoppolo to be their starter. But the Garoppolo experiment failed. O’Connell was forced into the starting job. He was 5-5 in his 10 starts, with 2,218 yards, 12 touchdowns and seven interceptions. Vegas cut Garoppolo in the off season. He’s now with the LA Rams, backing up Matthew Stafford.

The Raiders, leading into the draft, were in the mix for a first-round quarterback. Most experts predicted six would go in the first round. And Vegas, drafting 13th, likely could have one of them. But the Falcons, with pick 8, selected Michael Penix Jr. Atlanta already had signed free agent Kirk Cousins, so few anticipated Atlanta looking at a quarterback so early in the draft. The Broncos then moved up a spot to select Bo Nix, the sixth and final QB in the draft. There was no one left at pick 13 for the Raiders.

However, the Raiders did pick up a rookie quarterback after the draft. Vegas signed South Alabama’s Carter Bradley. His name might be familiar to NFL fans. Bradley is the son of former Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Gus Bradley. He now is the defensive coordinator with the Colts.

So there probably won’t be an answer in regards to the starting quarterback until late summer. So stay tuned.