Las Vegas Raiders quarterback competition update after preseason Week 1

Mike Moraitis

•
Las Vegas Raiders quarterback competition update after preseason Week 1 image

The Las Vegas Raiders opened up their preseason slate on Saturday against the Minnesota Vikings and it was the latest chapter in the quarterback competition between Gardner Minshew and Aidan O'Connell.

O'Connell got the start, but as head coach Antonio Pierce said during the week, that's not an indication of anything in terms of who is in the lead for the job, as whoever didn't start this week will get the nod next week. O'Connell played the entire first quarter but that only amounted to one drive.

And O'Connell was impressive (15 plays, 83 yards), completing 7-of-9 passes for 76 scoreless yards. He connected three times with Jakobi Meyers and twice with Brock Bowers while also displaying solid pocket presence and stepping up to avoid pressure.

He could've had better ball placement to give his receivers more of a chance to make a play after the catch, but it wasn't a glaring issue by any means.

The drive stalled near the goal line after Andrus Peat got cooked by Dallas Turner, leading to a sack. Peat got beat twice on the drive, but O'Connell managed to get rid of the ball the first time. Las Vegas settled for a field goal.

Minshew entered the game in the second quarter and led the Raiders on a six-play, 67-yard touchdown drive. He connected with Tre Tucker on a 29-yard pass to get things going, and then hit DJ Turner with a well-placed ball for a 20-yard touchdown a few plays later.

Minshew's second drive proved fruitful, also, and was highlighted by a good deep ball to Tre Tucker, who extended to make the 44-yard grab. The veteran completed two more passes, one to Cole Fotheringham and another to Ameer Abdullah, before Zamir White punched it in for six a few players later.

On his final drive, the Raiders went three-and-out but salvaged it with a 56-yard field goal from Daniel Carlson, which was set up by a blocked field goal on the Raiders' previous defensive drive.

Minshew final stat line was: 6-12, 117 yards, one touchdown, one carry, seven yards.

At the end of the day, both quarterbacks played well in their preseason debuts, so we can't say that one significantly pulled ahead of the other on Saturday. The biggest difference between the two is Minshew's ability to escape pressure.

Of course, the fact that Minshew had more wow plays and was part of two touchdown drives will make his turn more notable, but he also had more opportunities and O'Connell faced Minnesota's first-team defense.

Advantage Minshew, but not by a lot.

Mike Moraitis

Mike Moraitis Photo

After cutting his teeth with Bleacher Report, Mike Moraitis has covered the Los Angeles Rams and Tennessee Titans for FanSided, and the Titans and New York Giants for USA TODAY Sports Media Group. On top of his duties with Sporting News, Mike is the managing editor and lead writer for Titans Wire.