With Gardner Minshew suffering a season-ending injury during Sunday’s loss to the Broncos, Las Vegas is going to turn back to Aidan O’Connell.
Per Tom Pelissero of NFL Media, the Raiders are preparing to start O’Connell against the Chiefs on Friday afternoon.
O’Connell replaced Minshew in the starting lineup in Week 6, but suffered a broken thumb in the loss to the Rams in Week 7. O’Connell had been sidelined ever since, but Las Vegas opened his 21-day practice window on Monday.
In his Monday press conference, head coach Antonio Pierce noted that O’Connell needs to be able to “grip the ball comfortably” for the club to start him.
Desmond Ridder is also available at quarterback if O’Connell can’t play.
In four appearances with two starts this year, O’Connell has completed 63.4 percent of his passes for 455 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions.
As a rookie, O’Connell started last year’s Christmas Day victory over the Chiefs in Kansas City, though he didn’t complete a pass after the first quarter. In 11 appearances with 10 starts in 2023, O’Connell completed 62.1 percent of his throws for 2,218 yards with 12 touchdowns and seven interceptions.
