New Raiders coach Antonio Pierce intends to find a franchise quarterback, but there is no easy path.
HENDERSON, Nevada — Antonio Pierce wants a quarterback.
Yes, we all listen to the Las Vegas Raiders coach call up then-rookie Aidan O’Connell Her best friend” after he promoted and sent bench the veteran Jimmy Garoppolo. And the coach said at the end of the season that O’Connell showed enough in his nine-game audition to compete for a starting position in the future.
Antonio Pierce and quarterback Aidan O’Connell, at a Raiders game last season. AP Photo/John Locher
But when Pierce was touring Radio Row before the Super Bowl last week, he made one thing very clear: the Raiders need to add a quarterback.
Not bridge guys. No Band-Aids. No officer. A sincere quarterback and face of the franchise with whom to grow and cultivate the refounded culture and mystique of the Raiders.
“Whichever quarterback we go with, we’re going to go out there and we’re going to be screaming,” Pierce recently stated on ESPN NFL analyst Ryan Clark’s “The Pivot” podcast.
But the Raiders have the 13th overall pick in the draft, and the top three quarterbacks will likely be gone long before they’re scheduled to pick. So, How do the Raiders get Pierce’s desired quarterback and who could it be?
The Raiders are not known for drafting quarterbacks early, as they have used a first-round pick on a quarterback only three times since the 1970 AFL/NFL merger: Marc Wilson in 1980, Todd Marinovich in 1991 and JaMarcus Russell in 2007.
But Pierce has a bond with Jayden Daniels, the LSU Heisman Trophy winner who shouted out Pierce in his acceptance speech in December. They have a connection that goes back years, when Pierce recruited Daniels to his first college stop, Arizona State.
LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels (5) celebrates after a touchdown against Florida during the second half of an NCAA college football game in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. AP Photo/Derick Hingle, File
And if, Daniels was in the Raiders locker room after their nice season-finale win against the Denver Broncos, showing Pierce some support and, well, love.
A few weeks ago, when it seemed that Kliff Kingsbury was going to be the Raiders’ offensive coordinator, the prevailing theory was that Kingsbury, who was the position coach of the winner of the Heisman 2022 Caleb Williams at USC last yearOr, he had a prime lead to bring Williams to Las Vegas. Instead, Kingsbury changed course and went to the Washington Commanders, who have the second pick.
Coincidence?
The way things are now, going from 13th to the top 3 to select Williams, Daniels or North Carolina’s Drake Maye would cost a lot. Especially with the three teams at the top of the draft (the Chicago Bears, Commanders and New England Patriots) all potentially in the quarterback market.
The cost could be too much for the new Raiders general manager Tom Telescowho spent the previous 11 seasons as general manager of the Los Angeles Chargers.
Consider: According to stats and information from ESPN, Telesco made trades just twice in the first round during his tenure with the Chargers. And neither was a quarterback’s time, as he traded from 17th to 15th in 2015 to select running back Melvin Gordon IIIthen traded up to return to the first round in 2020 to select linebacker Kenneth Murray Jr.
That’s all.
Editorial Selections
2 Related
Y Jumping at least 10 positions in April would apparently be a herculean task which would likely require moving one or two star players.
If the receiver Davante Adams Is that chip, well, the New York Jets (who are reportedly interested in reuniting him with quarterback Aaron Rodgers) have the number 10 pick. Packing the 10th and 13th picks probably won’t be enough to move into the top 2 and make sure you get Williams or Daniels.
Besides, Adams told ESPN.com he was looking forward to working with incoming offensive coordinator Luke Getsy.who he spent time with when he played with the Green Bay Packers.
And wouldn’t it be counterproductive to get rid of Adams to develop a young quarterback, who would need all the weapons he can muster as he adjusts to the NFL?
If the Raiders stay put, Oregon’s Bo Nix could still be there at No. 13. Washington’s Michael Penix Jr. and JJ McCarthy could also be on the board. But do the Raiders see them as franchise players worthy of such a high pick?
That answer could be determined once Telesco has the full stock of current Raiders players.
“I have a lot to learn to understand this team from the inside, not from the outside,” Telesco said. in his introductory press conference when asked about the quarterbacks on the Raiders’ roster. “Obviously, Aidan played pretty well against us, so that’s a plus.”
In fact, O’Connell had a career-best 120.7 passer rating with four touchdown passes, no INTs and 248 passing yards in the Raiders’ 63-21 demolition of the Chargers on December 14, after which the Chargers fired Telesco and former coach Brandon Staley.
“But I need to go much deeper with this team in more a couple games and then talk to the staff,” Telesco added. “I have to know this team as well as I knew the team I just came from, which I don’t know yet, but I’ll get there pretty quickly.”
Therefore, Jimmy Garoppolo and the 15-year veteran Brian Hoyer remain on Raiders roster… for now.
Garoppolo is a cut candidate and, according to ESPN’s Roster Management System, is in line to earn a base salary of $11.25 million with a roster bonus of $12.78 million and a training bonus of $220,000 after signing a three-year free agent years and $72.75 million. deal with $45 million guaranteed last March and then restructuring last summer. His cap number is $28.52 million, with a cap hit of $28.32 million.
Garoppolo, who underwent surgery on his left foot after joining Las Vegas, never found his footing with the Raiders. He was benched immediately after Pierce was named interim coach and played just three snaps after Josh McDaniels was fired on Halloween night. Garoppolo led the NFL in interceptions (9) at the time and finished with career lows career highs in passer rating (77.7) and QBR (33.9) in seasons in which he started at least six games.
Jimmy Garoppolo, quarterback of the Las Vegas Raiders. getty
Still, Garoppolo, praised for his mentorship of O’Connell, was open to returning.
“You never know,” he told ESPN the day after the season finale. “Honestly, I just want to play again.”
As for O’Connell, Pierce said he saw growth with the rookie.
“At the end of the season he was playing really good football that led to some wins,” Pierce said. “He put himself in a position to learn what it’s like to be a professional in the offseason because he could reflect on what he had just done. If he didn’t have those opportunities, he would never know what mistakes he made.”
The wild card is Getsy, who trained Justin Fields In Chicago. What type of quarterback would the new offensive play-caller prefer and what kind of influence could he have on that decision?
If the Bears decide to move on from Fields, a coordinator-quarterback meeting could be awkward considering his midseason issue.
The Arizona Cardinalswho have selection number 4, they might be willing to hang Kyler Murray, but undersized QBs aren’t Raiders owner Mark Davis’ favorites.
And while Pierce may want that young franchise-type quarterback, going the route of recovery with a vet is in the Raiders’ DNA. Llamando a Jim Plunkett, Jay Schroeder, Jeff Hostetler, Jeff George, Rich Gannon, Kerry Collins, Daunte Culpepper, Jason Campbell, Carson Palmer y, bueno, Garoppolo.
If the Raiders go down that path, a group of veterans (Kirk Cousins, Ryan Tannehill, Baker Mayfield y Gardner Minshew) could hit the open market.
The only thing that is certain is that O’Connell will not be alone.
2024-02-16 17:17:04
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