Jimmy Garoppolo on Playing For Josh McDaniels

Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo and Coach Josh McDaniels are reuniting after their years together in New England.

Whether or not you like Josh McDaniels as a head coach, this offseason proves that players want to play for him.

The Las Vegas Raiders' new quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo is one of those on board. After playing for the former New England Patriots offensive coordinator for three seasons, the veteran wanted another go-around.

“For me, it starts with, he's very smart," Garoppolo said in his introductory press conference last week. "He's very smart. He taught me the game of football basically in the NFL. But he cares, too, about the game like he cares about winning. You could really tell just talking to him that winning is important to him, and I wouldn't say that's true about everyone in the NFL. So when you do get an opportunity like that, I mean, it's hard to pass up.”

Garoppolo came into the NFL having not had a playbook in college. McDaniels was able to help make that transition smoother for the then-rookie quarterback.

"[T]hankfully, Josh [McDaniels] and Jerry Schuplinski, they basically raised me in the NFL," Garoppolo said. "I didn't know what a Mike point was. I didn't know how to set up protection, but they taught me all that stuff back in the New England days, and it's done me very well going forward. So I appreciate those guys and I'm going to keep trying to learn from them.”

McDaniels can be tough, but it's a mentorship Garoppolo looks back on with appreciation from his days in New England.

"It's a blessing in disguise almost," Garoppolo said. "It's one of those things -- I was talking to my brother about it the other day -- you hate it initially, especially as a young player, you're like: 'Man this is hard,' and it is hard. Like the NFL is hard, but you appreciate it later in your career, because you're like: 'I'm glad I went through that because it's making everything else so much easier.' So there's a give and take there, but Josh [McDaniels], he'll push you, but you appreciate it in the end."

The 2023 NFL Draft will go from April 27-29 and be held at Union Station in Kansas City, Mo. The 2023 NFL Year and Free Agency period began at 4 p.m. EDT on March 15.

The Raiders are expected to be significant players in the free-agent market this offseason.

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