During the 2023 season, the Las Vegas Raiders made a pivotal decision to switch quarterbacks, moving from seasoned veteran Jimmy Garoppolo to rookie Aidan O’Connell. This change came on the heels of head coach Josh McDaniels‘ dismissal.
Star wide receiver Davante Adams, who features in the new Netflix docuseries “Receiver,” voiced his approval of the move. Adams disclosed that he “signed off on” the decision prior to its official announcement. His support was crucial, as he hinted at potentially leaving the team if the change wasn’t made, according to Vegas Sports Today.
“Well my opinion on that, was I signed off on that,” Adams noted.
“And that’s just the reality of it. You know, I love Jimmy and he’s a great guy, but something had to happen in order for us to have a stretch and in order for me to remain a Raider, in all honesty.
“I want whoever is going to look the best when it’s live bullets. I think right now if I had to say, I think Aidan has the job because obviously he was here before and that’s the way that it was. He was running with the one’s more and until Gardner comes in and takes the job away from him, I think it’s Aidan‘s job right now.”
Under the leadership of interim head coach Antonio Pierce and with O’Connell at quarterback, the Raiders saw a resurgence in the latter half of the season. The team went 5-4 in their final nine games, showing marked improvements on both offense and defense, and concluded the season with an 8-9 record after starting 3-5.
O’Connell‘s performance had its highs and lows, but he finished the season on a strong note.
