Gardner Minshew started 20 games for the Jaguars, four for the Eagles and 13 for the Colts. He’s on the move again, competing with Aidan O’Connell for the starting quarterback job with the Raiders.
The quarterbacks are splitting snaps with the starting offense, a rotation that is expected to continue into training camp and the preseason.
“It’s been great,” Minshew said Tuesday, via Tashan Reed of TheAthletic.com. “We’ve both put together a good camp so far. We’ve been pushing each other but also just enjoying each other and our room. . . . We’re having a ton of fun right now and being very competitive. I think that’s only going to make our team better.”
Minshew has the edge in experience, with 29 more starts, four more seasons and one more Pro Bowl appearance than O’Connell, who theoretically has more upside. Both are learning offensive coordinator Luke Getsy’s offense.
The Raiders signed Minshew to a two-year, $25 million deal despite repeatedly expressing faith in O’Connell, a fourth-round pick in 2023. But the team is having a true quarterback competition, with neither the frontrunner.
Only once in his career has Minshew been the Week 1 starter. He hopes to make it two this season, but at the same time, he’s working to help make O’Connell better.
“As any real competitor, you don’t want them to be worse. You want yourself to be better,” Minshew said. “So, the better he is, if I’m beating him out, that means I’m just raising it that much more. That’s how I’ve always viewed it: If he’s pushing me, and he’s completing every pass, I’ve got to figure out a way to do better. That’s the only way to really improve.”
