As the Las Vegas Raiders continue to evaluate their quarterbacks in order to make a decision about who will start between Gardner Minshew and Aidan O'Connell, head coach Antonio Pierce has provided a timeline for when that decision could occur.
According to ESPN's Paul Gutierrez, Pierce said he anticipates making a decision for who will start between Minshew and O'Connell following the preseason Week 2 game against the Dallas Cowboys on Saturday, Aug. 17.
Pierce added that things will go the same way they did in preseason Week 1, with both Minshew and O'Connell getting a quarter each in the next exhibition contest.
#Raiders coach Antonio Pierce anticipates making a decision on starting QB AFTER the next exhibition. Says both O'Connell and Minshew will play at least a quarter against the #Cowboys on Saturday
— Paul Gutierrez (@PGutierrezESPN) August 11, 2024
In the preseason opener, O'Connell saw the first series of the game, and that was the only series he saw, as the quarter ended before he could get another drive. Minshew, on the other hand, was able to get three series in the second quarter because of fast drives by both teams.
Things remain close between the two, but you can probably make the argument that Minshew is slightly ahead because of the two touchdown drives he led the Raiders on. O'Connell still had an impressive drive that went 15 plays and 83 yards, but he failed to get the Raiders in the end zone after taking a sack in the red zone.
The competition remaining close is par for the course this offseason. Neither signal-caller has really taken a firm hold on the job, and the same can be said after what we saw in preseason Week 1.
Whatever the case may be, it looks like we'll finally have an answer in about a week.
