Shortly after Las Vegas Raiders team owner Mark Davis fired head coach Josh McDaniels, general manager David Ziegler and offensive coordinator Mick Lombardi this week (naming Antonio Pierce the interim head coach), the organization is making more big changes to the team.
According to NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport, the Raiders are benching quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo and plan to start rookie Aidan O’Connell in Week 9 vs. the New York Giants, and will continue with O’Connell moving forward. Garoppolo is having a rough season after having signed a three-year deal with the Raiders this offseason; he’s currently 3-3 as the starter this year with career-lows in yards per attempt (7.2), passer rating (78.1) and TD-INT ratio (0.78), and leads the league in interceptions with nine despite playing in just six games.
Garoppolo’s benching comes off the Raiders’ 26-14 loss to the Detroit Lions on Monday night, in which he completed just 47.6% of his passes for a season-low 126 passing yards and one interception. The former New England Patriots and San Francisco 49ers QB agreed to a three-year, $67.5 million deal, including $34 million guaranteed, with the Raiders in this past March.
O’Connell, meanwhile, ws selected by the Raiders in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL Draft out of Purdue, and made his first career start in Week 4 against the Los Angeles Chargers, completing 24 of 39 passes for 238 yards and one interception with a rushing touchdown in the 24-17 loss. O’Connell also stepped in for Brian Hoyer during the Week 7 loss to the Chicago Bears, and completed 10 of 13 passes for 75 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
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