Silver Minings: Aidan O’Connell gets praise from college coaches

The Las Vegas Raiders open the season with a new starting quarterback. Jimmy Garoppolo will take the helm as the latest signal call for the franchise after six seasons with the San Francisco 49ers.

Garoppolo is on the backside of his career, and the front office must prepare for the future. They had the option of taking a quarterback to develop in the draft.

One player Dave Ziegler was fond of was Aidan O’Connell from Purdue. The two-year starter fit the system, and the Raiders aggressively traded up for the quarterback.

ESPN’s new article featured 30 college coaches who gave their opinions are certain prospects, and O’Connell became the topic of discussion. Coaches believe he has a future as a backup QB in the NFL.

“He’ll be a really long-term, good backup, he’ll play forever,” a Big Ten coach said. “He’ll wear a ballcap, hold a clipboard, make a lot of money. He’s so smart and he’s really accurate. But there aren’t many statues anymore [at quarterback].”
With O’Connell in the fold, the Raiders hope they have a backup that can develop into a starting quarterback: Garoppolos injury history shows we might see him sooner than later.

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