Raiders to Name Gardner Minshew or Aidan O'Connell as QB1 After 2nd Preseason Game

If everything goes according to plan, the Las Vegas Raiders will know who their starting quarterback is in one week.

ESPN's Paul Gutierrez reported Sunday that Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce plans on naming the winner of the quarterback battle between Aidan O'Connell and Gardner Minshew following the team's preseason game against the Dallas Cowboys on Saturday.

"We've got to get ready to play football, and I think we've got enough film," Pierce said Sunday. "We'll have two games here [by then] to evaluate both quarterbacks to see how they'll play."

O'Connell got first crack as the starter in Saturday's preseason opener against the Minnesota Vikings.

He finished 7-of-9 for 76 yards, zero touchdowns and zero interceptions, while Minshew went 6-of-12 for 117 yards, one touchdown and zero picks in relief. Anthony Brown Jr. finished the game under center, and the Vikings outscored Las Vegas 17-3 in the second half on the way to a 24-23 victory.

The Raiders selected O'Connell with a fourth-round pick in last year's draft, and he ended up starting 10 games. The Purdue product was solid but unspectacular while going 5-5 as a starter and completing 62.1 percent of his passes for 2,218 yards, 12 touchdowns and seven interceptions.

It wasn't enough to guarantee his job heading into the 2024 campaign, as Las Vegas signed Minshew to a two-year deal this offseason.

Minshew has bounced around throughout his career and started games for the Jacksonville Jaguars, Philadelphia Eagles and Indianapolis Colts. He filled in admirably for the injured Anthony Richardson in Indianapolis last season and went 7-6 as a starter while keeping the team alive in the AFC playoff race.

All that bouncing around also means he knows the Week 1 starter won't necessarily be the one under center all season.

"We're competing for the role to help the Raiders," Minshew said.

"I've never been on a team where one quarterback plays the whole time. There's going to be an opportunity, and we both have to hang in there and just lead the offense when we're in."

There will be plenty of pressure on each quarterback during the second preseason game, but such a tight battle means Pierce may not hesitate to go to the other one if there are regular-season struggles.

Las Vegas begins the 2024 campaign on Sept. 8 against the division-rival Los Angeles Chargers.