Raiders report: Aidan O’Connell not ready to grade rookie season
Raiders quarterback Aidan O’Connell is not quite ready to give himself a grade on his rookie season with one game left to play.
The only metric that matters to him is the team’s record.
“Throughout it, there’s been good and bad,” he said of his tenure as the starter. “I think I’m more so just disappointed that we didn’t win more games. I think that’s what ultimately will be what hurts the most is not being able to pull out some of the games that I think we could have won.”
The Raiders are 4-4 since O’Connell took over as the full-time starter when Josh McDaniels was fired as coach. They have a chance to go out on a high note when they host the Broncos at 1:25 p.m. Sunday in a game with no postseason ramifications because both teams have been eliminated.
O’Connell said he hopes to create some positive vibes heading into his first NFL offseason.
“We’ve been in every single game, and so it’s been frustrating to not be able to go win some of those games, even coming down to the last drive,” he said. “So, that’s kind of the scar tissue that hurts. Obviously, we’ve had some good wins, but yeah, I think the lack of capitalizing on opportunities in late drives and stuff like that, I think that’s what I’m thinking about the most.”
He wants to get through this game before engaging in much self-reflection.
“It’s easy to think about what could have been and what you could have done in each game,” he said. “There’s good times to do that and there’s not good times to do that. I don’t think right now I’m really doing that. I’m going to wait until after the season to kind of reflect more.”
When he does take time to analyze how the year went, he will probably take pride in his improvement at avoiding sacks and protecting the football.
He has been much better in recent weeks, especially compared to his first career start against the Chargers when he was sacked seven times, threw an interception and fumbled three times.
O’Connell has throw just one interception in his last five starts.
“Just playing within myself I think is the biggest thing,” he said. “The practice reps are extremely valuable. The game reps from week to week, seeing what windows are open and whether they are maybe a little too tight to throw into, and just trying to put as much as I can in the bank and remember.
“I think being able to learn from experiences, even failure sometimes, is super helpful. So, you fail and you learn, and you try not to make the same mistake twice.”
Crosby honored again
Defensive end Maxx Crosby was named to his third straight Pro Bowl on Wednesday and picked up an award from his own locker room Thursday.
It’s the third consecutive time he has been selected as the team’s Commitment To Excellence winner.
The award is presented each year to the Raiders player who best exemplifies hard work, leadership, and excellence on and off the field throughout the season.
Injury report
Rookie tight end Michael Mayer remained out of practice Thursday with a toe injury and is unlikely to play in the season finale.
Running back Josh Jacobs (quadriceps) and offensive tackle Thayer Munford (knee/illness) also missed practice.
On the positive side, center Andre James (ankle/finger) and offensive tackle Kolton Miller were both full participants for the first time in several weeks. Defensive end Malcolm Koonce was also upgraded to full participation despite dealing with elbow and wrist injuries.
Local coach nominated
Sunrise Mountain football coach Chris Sawyers has been named the Raiders’ nominee for the Don Shula High School Coach of the Year Award.
Each of the 32 NFL teams selected a nominee for the award, and an AFC and NFC winner will be selected to attend the Pro Bowl in Orlando, Florida, and be recognized at events throughout the week.
Sunrise Mountain went 9-2 this season and reached the Class 4A state championship game.
Contact Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AdamHillLVRJ on X.