Jimmy Garoppolo

The time in Las Vegas for the most handsome man in the NFL has been tumultuous, to say the least. Jimmy Garoppolo signed a free agent deal with the Raiders in 2023 and has been on a roller coaster ride ever since. Garoppolo first spent time on the bench after injury, was outshined by rookie QB Aidan O’Connell, and had his job officially usurped by O’Connell after the ouster of Head Coach Josh McDaniels, who foolishly imagined Garoppolo could lead the Raiders.

Garoppolo’s latest stumble involves PEDs. The NFL has suspended Jimmy G for two games for “violation without a therapeutic exemption.” What that means is nebulous as far as the behavior and substance, but what it means for Garoppolo’s future with the Raiders is more clear. The likelihood of Garoppolo starting another game for the Raiders has now changed from mostly unlikely to incredibly unlikely. Garoppolo should not be owned in any format.

With the firing of Head Coach Josh McDaniels and GM Dave Ziegler, the Raiders’ interim staff, led by Head Coach Antonio Pierce, has chosen to start rookie Aidan O’Connell at QB over Jimmy Garoppolo.

The firings of McDaniels and Ziegler, as well as the benching of Jimmy G, came as welcome and long-overdue to Raider Nation after a start to the season that left the fans a little more than “disgruntled.” Garoppolo, who signed as a free agent after the unceremonious ousting of Raiders Legend Derek Carr, performed terribly, at best, while missing two games to injuries.

O’Connell, the rookie 4th round draft pick from Purdue, looked poised and efficient in his first start against the Chargers, until a terrible McDaniels play-call led to a game-ending interception and the loss. The news must also come as relief for owners of Raiders pass catchers. Davante Adams and Jakobi Meyers will both benefit from a more accurate deep-passer.

For the second time this season Las Vegas Raiders will be less handsome this week as they travel to Chicago to face the Bears. Jimmy “Jimmy G” Garoppolo has been ruled out after suffering a back injury in last week’s victory against the New England Patriots. Garoppolo has not played a full season’s compliment of games since 2019 with the 49ers.

Davante Adams has seen 5 different quarterbacks in his stint with the Raiders including 4 different QBs in his last 7 games. Whether he will be improving the overall fantasy performance of Raiders backup Brian Hoyer, or rookie 4th Round pick Aidan O’Connell has not been announced yet.

O’Connell looked sharp in his lone start this season but committed standard rookie mistakes. Hoyer showed off his superiority over Garoppolo with the deep-ball and threw for 102 yards in his brief stint against New England. Either quarterback should benefit from the increased usage of rookie TE Michael Mayer and the ability of rookie WR Tre Tucker to stretch the Bears vulnerable pass defense, while Adams and Jakobi Meyers provide the bulk of the Raiders’ passing-game threat.

It’s Aidan O’Connell’s big day, today, in LA. The rookie quarterback from Purdue will make his first NFL start, in place of the bell-rung Jimmy G, as the Raiders travel to the Chargers. O’Connell was given the spot start over backup Brian Hoyer.

While the relative handsomeness of the three QB’s may be up for debate, O’Connell closely resembles Super Troopers character Rod Farva, the Raiders brass decided that the levels of readiness weren’t. O’Connell took first-team snaps in practice this week with Garoppolo in concussion protocol.

It’s somewhat dubious starting unseen rookie quarterbacks in fantasy, but O’Connell comported himself nicely in the pre-season completing 69.4% of his passes and leading all rookies in QBR. He does have two very capable receivers in Davante Adams and Jakobi Meyers who will help him against a Chargers defense that is ranked 28th in defensive points allowed and last in passing yards allowed.