Rookie Aidan O’Connell will start at quarterback for the Las Vegas Raiders at the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday, ESPN reported.
He’ll be filling in for veteran starter Jimmy Garoppolo, who is in the concussion protocol and has been ruled out.
The Raiders (1-2) opted for O’Connell over 37-year-old Brian Hoyer, who has not started and won a game since Oct. 2, 2016, as a member of the Chicago Bears.
O’Connell will be making his NFL regular-season debut. In the preseason, he threw for 482 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions.
He was a fourth-round pick (No. 135 overall) in the 2023 NFL Draft. In four seasons at Purdue, he completed 66.7 percent of his passes for 9,219 yards and 65 touchdowns against 30 interceptions.
The Raiders signed Garoppolo to a three-year, $72.75 million contract in the offseason to replace longtime starter Derek Carr.
Las Vegas also ruled cornerback Nate Hobbs out for Sunday. For the Chargers, center Corey Linsley is out due to an illness.
–Field Level Media