When Antonio Pierce became the Raiders‘ interim coach midway through last season, his first major act was naming then-rookie Aidan O’Connell the starting quarterback.
Pierce, now the full-time Las Vegas coach, is turning again to O’Connell as the Raiders reach a critical part of their season and is benching Gardner Minshew with the Pittsburgh Steelers visiting on Sunday.
O’Connell went 5-4 after he became the starter last season. Pierce said Wednesday he has seen the QB grow in confidence and become more vocal.
“He has a certain presence about himself,” Pierce said. “I love how he walks around the building, but really what I respect most is when we named Gardner the starter, he was like, ‘All right, I’ll be the best scout-team quarterback possible.’ He was lighting our (behind) up, and every day he gave us the best look.”
The Raiders went 2-3 under Minshew, and it was his interception in the second quarter of Sunday’s 34-18 loss at Denver that dramatically changed the tone of that game. Las Vegas appeared to be on the verge of going ahead 17-3 and taking control of the game, but Minshew overthrew tight end Brock Bowers and Broncos cornerback Pat Surtain II returned the interception 100 yards for a touchdown.
Minshew threw another interception in the third quarter and then was replaced by O’Connell, who had his own struggles in passing for 94 yards with a pick.
But Las Vegas, which has suffered a series of injuries throughout its lineup, needs a spark if the Raiders are going to maintain any realistic chance of making the postseason. After the Steelers, they face the Rams, Chiefs and Bengals — two of those games on the road — in a potential make-or-break stretch before their bye week.
Pierce wasn’t ready to say whether going with O’Connell represented a permanent decision for this season, only that it was his choice for now.
The two quarterbacks had a preseason competition for the starting job that was decided about three weeks before the season began.
Minshew, who signed a two-year, $25 million contract with the Raiders, showed flashes of why he won the job, such as the fourth-quarter comeback victory at Baltimore. But he also was inconsistent, throwing for 1,014 yards with four TDs and five interceptions.
Pierce said Minshew handled the benching “like a pro.”
Reporting by The Associated Press.
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