Raiders' Aidan O'Connell Talks Support From His Teammates

Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Aidan O'Connell has received strong support from his teammates, even before this offseason.

Dec 31, 2023; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Aidan O'Connell (4) passes the ball in the first half against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports / Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

Las Vegas Raiders second-year quarterback Aidan O'Connell is in the middle of a critical position battle with his new teammate, Gardner Minshew II.

Raiders coach Antonio Pierce said this week that there isn't a frontrunner and that there wasn't a timetable on the decision, but if you ask O'Connell's No. 1 target, six-time Pro-Bowl wide receiver Davante Adams, he's the guy.

"I think right now, if I had to say, I think Aidan has the job because, obviously, he was here before, and that's the way that it was," Adams said before training camp when he joined "Speak" on FS1. "He was running with the 1s more, and until Gardner comes in and takes the job away from him, I think it's Aidan's job right now."

Adams and the rest of O'Connell's teammates returning from last year have given him their support long before this position battle.

"Davante and others have supported me since I got here," O'Connell said at training camp this week. "I've said that a bunch of times, even more than one year ago when I was a rookie in the spring. So, support of my teammates means a lot to me, but at the same time, I've got to go earn in every day, and it truly is every day. It's a 'What have you done for me lately?' kind of business. And so, it's important to come out here every day with the mentality that I got to earn it."

Other players like All-Pro defensive end Maxx Crosby have also expressed their support for O'Connell.

"Aidan has come a long way," Crosby said last month. "Like I said, it's the offseason, so you take everything with a grain of salt, but just seeing his maturity and seeing how he's starting to talk back, talk some s--- back, and I encourage it. It's like that's what I want him to do. The best of the best, they're ultimate competitors. The [Patrick] Mahomes, the -- back in the day -- the [Tom] Bradys, the Payton Mannings, the guys like that, they were always jawing back and forth and standing up. At the end of the day, you show a little bit of weakness, people are going to hop all over that, so for him, seeing him kind of come back at us, it's awesome to see."

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