Could the Raiders be the next team to make a quarterback switch? That’s the burning question on everyone’s minds following Sunday’s 36-22 loss to the Panthers. Head coach Antonio Pierce was rather evasive on the subject during his press conference on Monday, leaving the door open for a potential change under center.
Pierce made a bold move during the Week 3 contest by inserting second-year quarterback Aidan O’Connell into the game late, after the outcome had been all but decided. The coach explained that he was searching for an offensive spark, and O’Connell did provide just that.
While starter Gardner Minshew put up decent numbers, going 18-of-28 for 214 yards with one touchdown and one interception, O’Connell showcased his talent by going 9-of-12 for 82 yards with a touchdown. Pierce acknowledged Minshew’s performance, but also highlighted the importance of improving on early downs to make things easier on his quarterback.
“I mean, there’s some plays that I know that you want to make and take advantage of. But I thought we did do some good things,” Pierce said. “The problem is, when you don’t win on early downs, these longer third downs — that’s not in the best interest of our offense and Gardner. So we’ve got to do a better job on early downs and make it easier for him on third down.”
Regarding O’Connell’s showing, Pierce stated, “Well I just think, you look at how the game went, we’re down by two scores or so, let Aidan come in, see what he can do with the offense, move it. We were just trying to look for a spark.”
The big question now is what this could mean for O’Connell, Minshew, and the Raiders’ offense moving forward. Pierce remained cryptic, saying, “I think we’ve got to get with the players and evaluate everything from yesterday first.”
This vague response is significant considering Minshew’s performance over the past three weeks. The quarterback has completed 74 percent of his passes for 747 yards with three touchdowns and three interceptions, in addition to losing a fumble.
Could we see a change at quarterback for the Raiders in the near future? Only time will tell as the team evaluates their options and looks to ignite their offense for the remainder of the season.
