Raiders bench QB Gardner Minshew after losing to the Denver Broncos

On Wednesday, news broke that the Las Vegas Raiders would be sending QB Gardner Minshew to the bench in favor of Aidan O'Connell. The Raiders actually threw O'Connell out there for Week 5 after Minshew wasn't able to get much done. Neither Minshew nor O'Connell had a good time against the Broncos' defense, which has surely played a part in the New York Jets firing Robert Saleh and the Raiders officially making Aidan O'Connell the starting QB.

In Week 5, Minshew went 12/17 for 137 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions. He finished with a 74.5 passer rating and threw the already famous Patrick Surtain II 100-yard pick-6 in the first half, which was clearly the turning point of the game. On the year, Minshew has thrown four touchdowns against five interceptions, which is just not good.

When O'Connell came into the game, he went 10/20 for 94 yards and one interception for a 42.5 passer rating. For both Raiders' QBs, they just couldn't get much going.

The Broncos defense is a huge problem for opponents

The defense has taken QBs like Baker Mayfield, Aaron Rodgers, and now both Gardner Minshew and Aidan O'Connell to the cleaners, and the Jets made an even bigger move earlier this week to fire former head coach Robert Saleh. The Jets are 2-3 on the year and are now losers of two games in a row.

They weren't able to score a single touchdown against the Denver Broncos and saw their QB Aaron Rodgers toss three interceptions in an ugly loss to the Minnesota Vikings. The Broncos' defense is flat-out excellent and has just made life extremely difficult for opponents.

They face the LA Chargers in Week 6, New Orleans Saints in Week 7, and Carolina Panthers in Week 8. It's not crazy to think that the Broncos' defense can again tee off against these three opponents who feel average at best.

The Raiders benching Gardner Minshew also feels somehow important when the two teams meet again later in the 2024 NFL Season, as Denver may have to deal with Aidan O'Connell under center, who could have a marginally higher ceiling than Gardner Minshew.

It'll be quite interesting to see if the Denver Broncos can keep this up on defense. If they can, and if the offense can start stacking games, the Broncos are not only going to finish with a winning record, but playoffs would not be far off either.