Raiders News: Aidan O’Connell Switches To Jersey No. 12 Out Of Respect To Derek Carr

After a promising rookie season in which he showed flashes of being able to lead this Raiders team, quarterback Aidan O’Connell will be looking to build on that performance in his second year. Of course, in order to do so, he will have to beat out veteran Gardner Minshew in a QB competition in training camp.

There will be something different about O’Connell on the field this season, as he has decided to switch his jersey number from 4 to 12. The reason he did so shows the type of character the second-year quarterback has.

O’Connell appeared on The Rush Podcast with his Raiders teammate Maxx Crosby and said that he chose to switch his number out of respect to previous Raiders quarterback Derek Carr, via Michael Baca of NFL.com:

“When the offseason came, it felt to me this is Derek’s number,” O’Connell said. “He wore it for that long and he’s a franchise leader and all this stuff. It felt disrespectful, so I just wanted to kind of give that back to him.”

Carr spent nine seasons as the Raiders quarterback, setting new franchise records for passing yards and touchdowns along the way. He was absolutely beloved and respected by his teammates and was a consummate professional and leader for the franchise.

It was very noticeable when O’Connell had the no. 4 jersey last season, but he revealed that the choice was not his:

“I didn’t pick 4,” O’Connell explained. “I was actually 9, and then Tyree (Wilson) wanted 9, so they gave 9 to Tyree. That was like in the first week I was here last year. And then they gave me 4, and as a rookie you kind of do what you’re told.”

As O’Connell said, when you’re a rookie, especially a mid-round draft pick, you simply do what you’re told. But it had to be a little awkward to be given the number of the quarterback who just left the franchise and also happens to be the franchise leader in all of the major categories.

But now, O’Connell’s focus is simply on being the best player he can be, and hopefully, that will lead to him being under center when the Raiders take the field for their regular season opener.

Aidan O’Connell says Raiders coach Antonio Pierce has given him a ‘great opportunity’

Considering what he showed as a rookie last season, Aidan O’Connell could have come into this offseason expecting to retain the starting job. But the Raiders chose to bring in Gardner Minshew and hold an open competition, which is just fine with O’Connell.

The quarterback had a ton of praise for Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce and the confidence he has shown in him overall, adding that the coach has given him a ‘great opportunity’ to win the starting quarterback job for the Raiders.