REPORT: Raiders' Biggest Unknown Entering Week 1 is on Offense

The Las Vegas Raiders will begin the 2024 season with Gardner Minshew II leading the offense. How confident can they be in Minshew?

Aug 23, 2024; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Gardner Minshew watches from the sidelines against the San Francisco 49ers at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The Las Vegas Raiders are starting the season with Gardner Minshew II as their starting quarterback. Head coach Antonio Pierce felt Minshew was the better option for the team to start the season fast, opposed to Aidan O'Connell.

The Raiders are confident in Minshew, but there are plenty of question marks. Can Minshew take care of the football like Pierce wants him to? Minshew has a penchant for falling into a "gunslinger" mentality. Sometimes he can get sloppy when trying to extend a play.

Pro Football Focus named Minshew's performance the biggest question mark for the Raiders heading into a Week 1 contest with their AFC West rival, the Los Angeles Chargers.

"The Raiders have an underrated defense and an offensive core that any quarterback would be happy with," PFF's John Kosko wrote. "The problem might be the quarterbacks throwing the ball to those weapons. Multiple teams needed to upgrade at the quarterback position this offseason, and only one, the Raiders, opted against doing so. Gardner Minshew could be considered an upgrade over Aidan O'Connell, but no one considers Minshew a long-term option.

"The Raiders have a solid roster, but will it be another disappointing, playoff-less season because they didn’t do more at the most important position in football this offseason?"

Former Raiders MVP quarterback Rich Gannon said during a preseason broadcast what he wanted to see from Minshew.

"He's gotta play all 17 games, you gotta be up and available for your teammates each and every week," Gannon said. "I want him to complete 70 percent of his passes. He's a career 62 percent completion guy, that's got to be better. Ball security -- keep the turnovers, Gardner, to a minimum. Give your team a chance to win each week. Most importantly, outwork everyone in the building. If you do that, you got a chance to really take control of this football team. ... I'm excited to see what Gardner Minshew can do with the 2024 Raiders."

Minshew will have a variety of weapons, whether it is the wide receiver trio of Davante Adams, Jakobi Meyers, and Tre Tucker, or the tight end duo of Michael Mayer and rookie Brock Bowers.

The Raiders want to be a running team behind Zamir White and a platoon of running backs. Minshew needs to contribute to the verticality of the passing game while taking care of the ball.

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