It’s no secret that Gardner Minshew has developed a few skeptics after Sunday’s 22-10 loss to the Chargers, but after re-watching film of the game, The Athletic’s Ted Nguyen talked specifically about where he feels Minshew needs to improve moving forward.
“We talked about how Gardner Minshew wasn’t the biggest issue against the Chargers. There’s often the blind issues, there are other issues too, but just watching the film, there were opportunities for Minshew to hit,” Nguyen said on the Just Win podcast.
“Watching the film, he played worse than I thought watching it live. There were opportunities and he just was gun shy. He did not want to pull the trigger,” Nguyen continued. “He missed on some passes. He had an opportunity to hit Devontae, and I don’t know if he had the arm to make that throw. Yeah, I was pretty underwhelmed rewatching him with all 22, and if he continues playing this way, maybe we see Aiden O’Connell a little sooner than we thought.”
It’s too early to abort the plan with Minshew at quarterback, but if the Raiders fall to a 0-2 record, there is going to be talk about when the Raiders should turn to Aidan O’Connell.
One detail that doesn’t get discussed a lot is that Minshew’s style of play might not be the perfect prototype for what Antonio Pierce is looking for in a quarterback. We know that Pierce has heavily emphasized taking care of the football and it’s a little concerning that Minshew didn’t show much of his gunslinger mentality against the Chargers.
If Minshew is holding back and “gun shy” as Nguyen suggested, we aren’t getting his best version. Minshew has rarely played uptight in his five-year career, and it will be interesting to see how much he holds back against the Ravens. Without a great day from the quarterback position, the Raiders are going to have a tough time getting out of Baltimore with a win.
Presumably, the Raider coaching staff is doing everything they can to adapt the offense to Minshew’s skill set, so let’s see what that will look like in week two.
x: @raidersbeat
Imagine if AOC played and Mack sacked him 6 more times … totally possible from what I saw out of that Oline. The reality is the RaaDuhs haven’t had good consistent qb play since DC’s second year. Until they get that they will be mired in mediocrity or worse even with this good defense.
You can’t make a dog out of a cat. AP wants a game manager who holds on to the ball. That is not what Uncle Rico does. This marriage is headed for the rocks and A.O.C. is NOT the answer at QB.Lets hope they don’t screw up the draft order this season by winning meaningless in November and dropping out of the top 10 draft spots.
It’s difficult to get an assessment on Minshew’s play when he’s running for his life as soon as the ball is snapped. OL is crap. Hopefully Powers-Johnson can finally get healthy and help this unit out. We still need upgrades at Rt and Center.
This might seem crazy to some but, I watched Trey Lance in preseason for the Cowboys. He looked great. I say, go get him. The kid had some bad luck and has a chip on his shoulder to play some great football. He has an arm and can run fast. And was also a former 1st round pick and he’s healthy!!!! What’s your thoughts?
Raiders fans relax! Raiders will be fine! As long as madd maxx gets on track! Raiders will be fine. 0-2 no problem! Look at next 5 games all winnable! How does 5-2 sound? So it’s a long season. I personally think that it’s Aiden’s team! Raiders will be in the playoffs!! Take that to the bank! Raiders #1