As Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Aidan O'Connell continues to battle it out with fellow signal-caller Gardner Minshew for the starting job, the former has no doubt impressed his teammates so far this offseason, including Maxx Crosby.
After the first practice of mandatory minicamp on Tuesday, Crosby heaped praise on O'Connell, noting that the second-year signal-caller has "come a long way" and is showing increased confidence, particularly when it comes to his trash talk.
"Aidan has come a long way," Crosby said, per Levi Edwards of Raiders.com. "Just seeing his maturity and seeing how he's starting to talk back. ... Seeing him come back at us is awesome to see."
Speaking of Tuesday's practice, neither O'Connell nor Minshew exactly had a great day, but Vic Tafur of The Athletic noted that O'Connell was the more accurate one.
O'Connnell's day was highlighted by a touchdown pass he threw to wide receiver Jalen Guyton, who made a tough catch while covered by two defenders after O'Connell put the ball in the right spot.
“AOC had a hell of a day today," cornerback Nate Hobbs said, according to Edwards. "Even as a teammate, he threw some balls I forgot he could make.”
While O'Connell has clearly impressed his teammates so far this offseason, there has not been any indication that he's winning the competition against Minshew. Look for this situation to drag out through training camp and into the preseason.
