Gardner Minshew will be the Las Vegas Raiders‘ starting quarterback going into the season, coach Antonio Pierce said Sunday.
Minshew beat out Aidan O’Connell for the starting spot. O’Connell started 10 games for the Raiders as a rookie last season after Pierce was named interim head coach following the firing of Josh McDaniels. Pierce’s interim tag was removed following the end of the season.
Minshew, a sixth-round pick by the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2019 following a standout final college football season under the late Mike Leach at Washington State in 2018, has started 37 of the 49 games he’s played in his journeyman NFL career.
He appeared in 23 games for the Jaguars, with 20 starts over his first two seasons before serving as Jalen Hurts‘ backup for two years on the Philadelphia Eagles, which included a memorable start in Hurts’ absence in a 40-34 Christmas Eve loss to the archrival Dallas Cowboys in 2022.
Minshew then followed Eagles offensive coordinator Shane Steichen to Indianapolis when Steichen was named the Colts‘ head coach and ended up starting 13 games for Indianapolis last year as rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson missed most of the season due to a shoulder injury. Minshew helped lead the Colts to a surprising 9-8 record, and Indianapolis remained in playoff contention until Week 18. He then signed with the Raiders in free agency last spring.
Minshew has 9,937 pass yards, a 62.6% completion rate, 59 touchdowns and 24 interceptions in his NFL career. He will now be the next Raiders quarterback throwing passes to superstar wide receiver Davante Adams.
The Raiders host the San Francisco 49ers on Friday in their final preseason game.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Las Vegas Raiders
Gardner Minshew
Aidan O’Connell
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