Raiders QB Gardner Minshew II is 'a Football Junkie'

Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Gardner Minshew II will be the team's starting quarterback to begin the season. Coach Antonio Pierce believes the veteran quarterback has many valuable traits.

Las Vegas Raiders QB Gardner Minshew, and QB Coach Scangarello / Darrell Craig Harris, Sports Illustrated

The Las Vegas Raiders recently concluded a competition for the starting quarterback position that took the entire offseason to decide.

Veteran quarterback Gardner Minshew II beat out second-year quarterback Aidan O’Connell for the position. Although O’Connell has undoubtedly improved since the end of last season, the Raiders coaching staff believes Minshew gives them the best chance to win games early in the season against some of the best defenses in the league last season.

Minshew has multiple factors that make him the better option at quarterback to start the season. The Raiders start the season against the Los Angeles Chargers, Baltimore Ravens, Cleveland Browns and Carolina Panthers. Three of those defenses were among the best in the league last season. The Chargers’ defense contains Joey Bosa and former Raiders linebacker Khalil Mack, who sacked O’Connell six times last season in the first start of O’Connell’s career. 

O’Connell’s inability or unwillingness to scramble is widely known to those in and around the team and opposing teams. Minshew’s mobility and many years of National Football League experience make him the best option for the Silver and Black, if only for the first few games of the season. However, Coach Pierce believes other traits make Minshew a quality starter and leader for the team. 

“He's a football junkie,” Pierce said. “We always talk about Maxx [Crosby] and Christian [Wilkins] about being the first guys in the building, but he's not too far behind,” Coach Pierce said. “And he stays late, and he's done a lot of things without a lot of hype and things that we talk about throughout the building that's starting to show up a little bit. 

“And I think our team is really taking notice of that. And obviously, since we’ve named him the starting quarterback, he's kind of taken on that role with our skill position players and our O-line. So, it's been good to see in the building.”

The Raiders paid Minshew handsomely for his services this offseason. He is one of the highest-paid players on the Raiders offense this season. Only wide receiver Davante Adams and left tackle Kolton Miller are the only two Raiders offensive players with a higher base salary than Minshew this season.

Telesco and the Raiders hope it was money well spent.

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