15 August 2023 , 20:24
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The Las Vegas Raiders have a promising rookie quarterback in Aidan O'Connell - and he impressed in his first preseason game.
O'Connell was selected in round four of the 2023 Draft and took his chance to show the world exactly what he is capable of. He achieved a 117.8 QB Rating while completing 15 of 18 passes for 141 Yards, and registered a touchdown in the Raiders' dominant 34-7 victory over the San Francisco 49ers.
The 24-year-old is currently third on the depth chart behind starter Jimmy Garoppolo and veteran Brian Hoyer, but he has certainly given them something to think about as they prepare for the new season. He has even been tipped to be the next Brock Purdy by analyst Ian Rapoport, and was a late-round gem before he was drafted in 2022 by the 49ers.
While talking to reporters after the game, O'Connell assessed his performance and how much he enjoyed being out on the field. “It was good. It was good,” the rookie said. “Definitely some things to work on still, but it was fun to be out there, live action and bullets are really flying.
"It’s a little different when you play quarterback, even if you practice against another team that can’t tackle you in practice and they can now. So, just to add a level of juice a little more. So, it was a lot of fun to be out there.” He added: “Honestly, I went out there pretty excited.
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"The first time we went out there in warm-ups and just running out in the NFL jersey I think is really when a lot of the jitters went away just to be out there and hear the crowd yell and everything like that. Obviously, you get into the flow of the game with the completions and getting hit a couple of times - those helped, but I was pretty confident today and just trying to do my job.”
After scoring his first touchdown he opted not to keep the ball, something that is customary for NFL players. The quarterback showed great composure despite playing his first-ever game at this level and was very calm after his impressive performance at Allegiant Stadium.
O'Connell has been tipped to be next Brock Purdy - who was drafted late but proved to be a top player (Ian Maule/Getty Images)“You just kind of hope to go out there and do your best and see what happens. I’m not worried about the stats," he said. “There’s more things than just the stats, and especially responsibility in the run game and stuff like that that I know I need to improve on. So, I know I have a lot of work to go still.”
Raiders coach Josh McDaniels enjoyed watching his rookie’s performance this past weekend and is keen to see what else he has in store. “I thought he generally handled himself well for the first (playing) opportunity,” he said.
“He’s going to learn a lot from some of the things we might have been able to do a little bit better that would’ve helped us maybe sustain a few drives. He soaks it all in, and he’ll take every opportunity to improve.” Raiders wide receiver Keelan Cole added: “Since Day 1, Aidan has been ready to go. So I’m not surprised at all about the performance.”