Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce elected to go with experience when he named Gardner Minshew the team’s starting quarterback earlier this month.
Minshew, 28, has started 37 games since the Jaguars selected him in the sixth round of the 2019 draft. And he most recently helped take the Colts to the brink of making the postseason in 2023.
Speaking with the media on Thursday, Pierce praised Minshew for the work he’s been doing inside the building to help the team get ready for the season.
“Yeah, he’s a football junkie,” Pierce said, via transcript from the team. “We always talk about Maxx [Crosby] and Christian [Wilkins] about being the first guys in the building, but he’s not too far behind. And he stays late, and he’s done a lot of things without a lot of hype and things that we talk about throughout the building that’s starting to show up a little bit. And I think our team is really taking notice of that.
“And, obviously, since we’ve named him the starting quarterback, he’s kind of taken on that role with our skill position players and our O-line. So, it’s been good to see in the building.”
Minshew and the Raiders will be in Los Angeles to start the season against the Chargers in Week 1.