Raiders' Andre James Talks Gardner Minshew, Aidan O'Connell

Las Vegas Raiders center Andre James gave his thoughts on quarterbacks Gardner Minshew II and Aidan O'Connell on Monday.

NFL Las Vegas Raiders center Andre James / Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports

The Las Vegas Raiders have made significant moves this offseason, specifically on their new-look offensive line.

One of the moves the Silver and Black made this offseason was re-signing center Andre James to a three-year, $24 million contract.

James is entering his sixth season in the NFL with the Raiders. He has played in 59 career games and has only five career offensive penalties.

James finished the 2023-24 season playing in 16 games with only one holding call and one false start penalty. He finished the season with a 74.6 overall offensive grade from Pro Football Focus.

The veteran center will be entering his sixth season with the SIlver and Black. In his first five seasons with the club, he saw five different starting quarterbacks -- Derek Carr, Jarrett Stidham, Jimmy Garoppolo, O'Connell and Brian Hoyer. Next season, James could be playing in front of yet another new quarterback, as a new quarterback battle will begin in offseason workouts and training camp.

While addressing the media Monday, James expressed his thoughts on quarterbacks Gardner Minshew II and Aidan O'Connell, starting with Minshew.

"It's been awesome," James said. He's a super high-energy guy, and you can feel his energy everywhere you go. I have been talking in the weight room with him, and he's a cool guy."

James also talked about second-year quarterback O'Connell and how exciting it was to see him develop as a rookie.

"Something cool to see about Aidan is that he continued to develop and grow throughout his rookie season, and it was super awesome to watch that firsthand," James said. "He took control of the huddle first thing when he came in, and he was super direct and took the lead, and it was just super awesome to watch him grow. I am excited to see you continue to develop as a quarterback."

Minshew finished last season throwing 305 completions on 490 attempts for 3,305 yards and 15 touchdown passes. O'Connell, meanwhile, threw 212 completions on 343 attempts for 2,218 yards and 12 touchdown passes, playing in 10 games as the starter.

It will be very interesting to see the competition between these two quarterbacks this offseason as the Raiders start to prepare for the 2024 season.

The NFL Draft will be held in Detroit, Mich., on April 25-27, 2024. The Las Vegas Raiders currently have the No. 13 overall pick.

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