There is reportedly a major disagreement in the Las Vegas Raiders draft meetings about what direction they want to take the football team, starting with the 2024 NFL Draft. The Raiders hold the No. 13 pick in April’s draft.
The Raiders have flexibility with the pick. They need help at cornerback, offensive line, and quarterback. The biggest need is arguably quarterback. They traded away Derek Carr to the New Orleans Saints last year and brought in Jimmy Garoppolo for the 2023 season.
Antonio Pierce has a rough quarterback room
Garoppolo is with the Los Angeles Rams this season after a failed experiment with Josh McDaniels, which led to both members being dismissed before the 2024 season. Aidan O’Connell looked raw as a rookie last season (12 touchdowns to seven interceptions), and the Raiders signed Gardner Minshew in free agency to compete with O’Connell for the QB1 spot this fall.
Still, many draft analysts think the Raiders should be in the running to draft a quarterback for the new regime. Head coach Antonio Pierce has been vocal this offseason about aggressively wanting the team to pursue a quarterback in the draft.
Tom Telesco doesn’t want the Las Vegas Raiders to trade up
According to Tony Pauline of Sportskeeda, Pierce and new general manager Tom Telesco disagree about what to do in the first round. Pierce wants to trade up for a quarterback, and Telesco wants a quarterback competition between O’Connell and Minshew:
“There’s also been talk about the Las Vegas Raiders wanting to move up for a quarterback. The latest coming from Raiders’ draft meetings is that head coach Antonio Pierce wants to trade up for a signal caller, yet general manager Tom Telesco is leaning heavily to sticking with second-year quarterback Aidan O’Connell and free-agent signing Gardner Minshew.”
Pierce and Telesco have different incentives
Pierce has every incentive to want a chance to move up and take a quarterback he can develop. As a coach who earned a promotion as an interim, he needs to either show he can succeed with the talent on the roster or buy time by having a young quarterback bloom in his system.
Telesco worked with Phillip Rivers before eventually drafting Justin Herbert. As vice president of football operations, Telesco helped the Indianapolis Colts take Andrew Luck in 2012. Simply put, Telesco has experience drafting good quarterbacks.
If anything, it’s telling Telesco doesn’t want to trade up for one of the quarterbacks in this draft. With the Denver Broncos and Minnesota Vikings expected to try and bid to move up for a quarterback, Telesco doesn’t seem willing to risk his or the Raiders’ future on one of the top quarterback prospects in this year’s class. Maybe they’re not that good.
But does that work for Pierce?
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