Quarterbacks produce in Raiders preseason opener

The Raiders have spent all of training camp untangling their quarterback situation, trying to figure out whether Aidan O’Connell or Gardner Minshew will be the full-time starter in 2024. In Saturday’s preseason opener at Minnesota, it looked like a good problem to have.

Both quarterbacks played, as expected, and both made their case for the No. 1 job in the Vikings' 24-23 victory.

O’Connell received the starting nod, and the second-year incumbent was treated like the current leader in the QB race, as he handled the first offensive drive and then watched the rest of the game from the sideline.

In his lone possession at the controls, O’Connell nearly led the Raiders the length of the field, taking over inside the Las Vegas 5-yard line and driving 93 yards before stalling on the goal line. O’Connell completed a pair of third-down passes to tight end Michael Mayer and receiver Jakobi Meyers to keep the drive alive, then found Meyers on a deep crossing route for 24 yards and hit Brock Bowers for nine yards on 3^rd-and-1 to push the ball into scoring range.

On 3^rd-and-goal from the 3-yard line, O’Connell retreated backward into a sack, leaving Daniel Carlson to knock in a short field goal.

O’Connell completed 7-of-9 passes for 76 yards on the drive and appeared cool and collected on his key third-down conversions.

Minshew took over for the rest of the first half, piloting three full drives and delivering points on all of them. His first attempt was a 29-yard completion to Tre Tucker down the seam for a chunk gain, and he scrambled out of the pocket to convert a third down and advance the ball to the Minnesota 20. Minshew finished it off on the next play, feathering a play-action pass to D.J. Turner for a touchdown.

The seventh-year veteran popped again on the next drive, pushing the ball downfield on 3^rd-and-11 and nailing Tucker with a 44-yard bomb. Minshew then connected with tight end Cole Fotheringham (11 yards) and running back Ameer Abdullah (10 yards) to set up a 2-yard touchdown run for Zamir White.

Minshew didn’t have to do much on his third drive to produce points; after a blocked field goal gave the Raiders favorable field position, Minshew tossed a pair of incompletions before Carlson stepped in and booted a 56-yard field goal.

Minshew got one more drive, taking over with less than a minute to play in the first half and running out the clock. His day was finished after that, wrapping with a line of 6-of-11 for 117 yards and one touchdown.

With both O’Connell and Minshew appearing effective on Saturday, the needle may not have moved much on the quarterback competition. O’Connell, a fourth-round pick in the 2023 draft, started 10 games as a rookie and completed 62.1% of his passes for 2,218 yards and 12 touchdowns. Minshew started 13 games for the Indianapolis Colts last year and completed 62.2% for 3,305 yards and 15 touchdowns; the Raiders lured him in free agency with a two-year, $25-million offer.

Aside from the quarterbacks, Bowers was a bright spot in his NFL debut. The No. 13 overall pick was targeted twice on the opening drive and hauled in both passes for 25 yards before heading to the bench. The former Georgia star lived up to his scouting report by being elusive in the open field, ringing up 18 yards after the catch.

Head coach Antonio Pierce said he intends to play most of his starters in the preseason, and he held to that on the defensive side. Defensive end Maxx Crosby played the entire first possession, as did prized free-agent pickup Christian Wilkins.

Wilkins, who signed for four years and $110 million in the offseason, was disruptive up front, registering a run stuff and a quarterback pressure that led to an incomplete pass.

The Raiders wrapped the Costa Mesa portion of training camp last week and will return to their Henderson headquarters this week ahead of next Saturday’s home preseason matchup against the Dallas Cowboys.

Mike Grimala can be reached at 702-948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Mike on Twitter at twitter.com/mikegrimala.