The Las Vegas Raiders took part in their first practice of mandatory minicamp on Tuesday and there were some important notes to mention in regard to both the quarterback competition and the offensive line.
As far as the quarterbacks are concerned, it turns out that Gardner Minshew saw the majority of the first-team reps over Aidan O'Connell on Tuesday, according to ESPN's Paul Gutierrez.
Gutierrez did add, however, that neither quarterback was particularly impressive, although The Athletic's Vic Tafur did note that O'Connell was more accurate than Minshew, so take that for what it's worth.
"While free agent veteran Gardner Minshew got the majority of the first-team reps in his quarterback competition with second-year returner Aidan O'Connell on Tuesday, neither QB distinguished himself particularly well in practice," Gutierrez wrote. "There were numerous off-target throws and several miscommunications with wideouts, when the two weren't being harassed by the defensive line."
We probably shouldn't read too much into Minshew getting more first-team reps until it becomes a consistent thing. Up until Tuesday, the signal-callers had been splitting reps evenly, by all accounts.
When it comes to the offensive line, it appears that guard Dylan Parham is making the switch to the right side in 2024 after starting at left guard during his first two seasons in the NFL. Tafur has more on that:
"It looks like guard Dylan Parham’s move to the right side is happening, partially to help out young right tackle Thayer Munford," Tafur wrote. "With rookie Jackson Powers-Johnson slowly working his way back from an undisclosed injury, veteran Cody Whitehair took first-team reps at left guard. Former Saint Andrus Peat was at left tackle, with Kolton Miller still on the mend from offseason shoulder surgery."
Rookie Jackson Powers-Johnson is expected to man the other guard spot, but he has missed significant time this offseason due to injury. Thankfully, he was back out there on Tuesday and still has time to catch up.
Cody Whitehair was deployed at left guard with JPJ working his way back and Andrus Peat was the replacement at left tackle with Kolton Miller still sidelined.
Peat played left tackle in 2023 but has spent the vast majority of his career at left guard. Along with Whitehair, Peat would almost certainly be in the mix for that spot if the Raiders feel Powers-Johnson isn't ready to start.
