Tom Brady puts faith in Geno Smith over Sam Darnold to lead teh Raiders' offense
The Las Vegas Raiders were all in for a new quarterback during the offseason. Last season, the Raiders started three different quarterbacks, with Gardner Minshew and Aidan O’Connell getting 9 and 7 starts respectively, while Desmond Ridder started the remaining game.
Vegas finished last in the AFC West with a 4-13 record, a significant drop from the 2023 season when they finished second in the division with an 8-9 record. The signal caller was just one of the Raiders‘ major weaknesses last season, as many positions lacked quality.
Nevertheless, it is the most important position in football, and thus, a decision had to be made. Since this year’s draft class was considered one of the weaker ones for quarterbacks, it made more sense to pursue a veteran free agent instead.
According to reports, seven-time Super Bowl winner and former NFL quarterback Tom Brady, who is a minority owner of the franchise, had a huge contribution in this regard. It has come to light that it was Brady’s decision not to pursue the current Seahawks QB, Sam Darnold, who was available at the time.
As per Michael Silver of The Athletic, Brady was at the forefront of the decision, and his opinion was held in high regard.
“While some believed the Las Vegas Raiders would try to sign Darnold, minority owner Tom Brady—a seven-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback whose opinion held great sway—was not in favor of that approach, according to a source familiar with the franchise’s internal discussions,”
Prior to signing Geno Smith as their new QB, several experts and fans believed that Sam Darnold could be in the reckoning for a move to Vegas as a free agent. Darnold was coming off a career year in Minnesota, leading the Vikings to the playoffs after going 14-3 in the regular season.
Darnold fit seamlessly into Kevin O’Connell’s system, and with offensive weapons such as Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, and T. J. Hockenson catching the ball, Darnold’s play improved significantly.
However, prior to last season, the third overall pick from the 2018 draft class had been struggling to land a starting role with any franchise. In 56 starts before the 2024 season, Darnold had around 12,000 passing yards, 63 touchdowns, and 56 interceptions. He had a 90-plus passer rating only once in 2022 with the Carolina Panthers. Despite playing for the New York Jets and the Panthers, Darnold was unable to succeed on either team and was relegated to the backup role.
Read More: ESPN Analyst Peter Schrager Has Super Bowl Ambitions for AFC North Team
Going with Geno Smith provides Brady and the Raiders with a more veteran experience, as well as the ability to run with the ball, if need be. Furthermore, Smith has been the more consistent passer, while Darnold had just the one effective season last year. Now, it will be interesting to see how the two players pan out for their respective teams.
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