In an effort to jump start their offense, the Las Vegas Raiders will be replacing quarterbacks this weekend with a new man.
As for the scope of their dissatisfied star? Same old, same old.
Davante Adams is likely to be sidelined and sophomore wide receiver Aidan O’Connell will step in for veteran linebacker Gardner Minshew II when the Raiders (2-3) host the Pittsburgh Steelers (3-2) on Sunday afternoon at Las Vegas. .
This will be the third game in a row that Adams is expected to miss due to a hamstring injury. While he was sidelined, trade rumors swirled around the 11-year veteran with five 1,000-yard campaigns in his past six seasons.
“We talked to get everything going,” Las Vegas coach Antonio Pierce said. “He’s still a Raider. He’s never been a Raider. If he’s healthy and can play, we’ll play him.”
Meanwhile, the Steelers are playing the same wait-and-see game when it comes to injury recovery with their top veteran.
Fullback Russell Wilson, who has not played this season with a calf injury, returned to the gym this week. He took reps with the second team in practice and is expected to serve as Justin Fields’ backup this week against Las Vegas.
Steelers coach Mike Tomlin left a specific answer when asked about Wilson’s status this weekend and in the coming weeks.
“Until then [Wilson] “When we get to the point where we’re comfortable with what we’re looking at, we’ll continue to push forward with Justin until those things are legal, and then we’ll make those decisions,” said Tomlin.
Fields posted a career-best 97.1 grader rating in his first season in Pittsburgh. He has passed for 961 yards, five touchdowns and one interception, and has rushed for 172 yards and three scores.
Najee Harris is the top Steelers running back with 270 yards but only 3.3 yards per carry. George Pickens leads the team’s receivers with 23 catches for 310 yards.
As for the Raiders, O’Connell is set to make his first start of 2024 after starting 10 games as a rookie in 2023. The Purdue product played two games in a backup role this season, completing 19 of 32 passes for 176 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
Pierce pulled Minshew after he threw two touchdown passes in last week’s 34-18 loss to the Denver Broncos. He said O’Connell got the chance to start but left the opportunity open for him to return to Minshew later in the season.
“I don’t plan on making any switches anytime soon,” Pierce said. “When it’s time to change, we’ll make a change.”
Pierce said he was impressed with O’Connell’s maturity as a second-year player.
“(He’s) out of that goal, he doesn’t look like a rookie anymore,” Pierce said. “He’s not acting like a rookie anymore. There’s something about him. I like the way he walks around the building.
“Actually, to my greatest respect, when we named Gardner the starter, he said, ‘Okay, I’m going to be the best scout team quarterback possible.’ And he’s been lighting it up (defensively) and every day he gives us a great look and walks away with a smile on his face.
Raiders rookie tight end Brock Bowers will look to stay hot after scoring his first touchdown last week against Denver. Bowers leads the team with 313 receiving yards.
Las Vegas also hopes to ignite its running game, which has sprung up this season. Zamir White leads the team with 152 rushing yards and Alexander Mattison follows with 125.
Both teams have elite pass rushers.
Steelers’ TJ Watt has 4.5 sacks in five games this season after tallying 19 sacks in 17 games last year. Watt passed 100 career sacks last week against the Cowboys.
Raiders pass rusher Maxx Crosby can be a game changer on defense. Crosby has five sacks in four games after averaging 14.5 in 2023.
–Field Level Media
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