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Our thoughts of press go out to everybody out in New Orleans impacted by the attack there. Just horrible ahead of the sugar bowl. Just terrible, terrible. And of course in Las Vegas too. We don't know all the details with Las Vegas. We do know a truck exploded at the Trump Hotel. So that hits close to home for Raiders fans and for our folks there in Las Vegas. So our best out to everybody there and be careful out there. All right, we're back. We're talking Raiders football. And I got to tell you, man, listen, I don't like to criticize other people's works and I'm not necessarily criticizing the work, the premise. When you see, I saw a headline that said something to the effect that, you know, Aiden O'Connell and CJ Strada, if you look at the numbers, you'd be surprised. Aiden O'Connell is better or just as good. And I think it's a good example of what we've been saying on this show, by the way, to make it clear and jump in, Bo, if I'm wrong here. We've been saying, Aiden O'Connell is a good quarterback, that he should be QB2. He could be your QB2 for a long time. He can come in. He can win games. He's improving in certain areas of his game. We've said that all along. But now what we're seeing, though, and maybe it's just a way to grab readership or grab social media interactions, whatever it is, when you start comparing now, CJ Strada was rookie the year last year. He struggled this year, but in the story and in the conversations I've seen around, for example, comparing him to CJ Strada is this idea around numbers. And numbers do tell a story. There's no question. But numbers don't tell the full story. Right. So there's a comparison between CJ Strada's numbers and Aiden O'Connell's numbers. And in certain categories, Aiden O'Connell, they play a similar amount of games. I think Aiden O'Connell has played a few more games. So I think Aiden O'Connell, 19 games, CJ Strada 60. So keep that in mind. The counting numbers, you have to be careful with counting numbers, especially when one player has played more games than the other. The other thing you have to take into account here with these numbers, as far as passing was our concern between Aiden O'Connell and CJ Strada is number one. Aiden O'Connell, the schedule he's played, and CJ Strada's schedule he's played. So people are going to say, well, CJ Strada doesn't look so special this year. Remember that Houston Texas won their division last year, which means they're playing a first place schedule, which means they're scheduled. There's going to be harder than the rate of schedule. So you can't really say if you switch them and put Aiden O'Connell in the Houston Texas situation, that Aiden O'Connell will put up the same numbers because you're playing different opponents. You're playing tougher opponents. You're playing other division winners and other top teams in the league. So you cannot just use the numbers to say, well, Aiden O'Connell's numbers will be the same if he were in Houston. Because we don't know that. The other thing about this is with numbers, our concern is, when the Raiders last year, we talked about them playing against bad teams, back and quarter backs. So the competition is going to be watered down a bit. Remember, Aiden O'Connell had a big game against the Los Angeles Chargers last year, right? Raiders scored a franchise high at 63 points. It was one of his best career games. Let's keep that into context, right? So playing a Chargers team last year with Easton Stick, a Chargers team that basically gave up on the head coach who was eventually fired. Aiden O'Connell put up a lot of big numbers. So some of these numbers are a big skewed based on the competition. Now you play whoever it is on your schedule, but you have to give these passing numbers some context. Look at the opponents they play. Look at what was around them. Look what was going on this season. Now again, C. Estrad's having a down year. So the numbers are a lot close, not because of this down year. But after the first year, this comparison wouldn't even be made. Let's also keep in mind that C. J. Estrad, you set one offensive rookie of the year, elevated his football team. So beyond the numbers, what does the quarterback do for the football team? Is the elevating the players around him? Is the elevating his team? C. J. Estrad, with his numbers, elevated his team to the playoffs. Let's keep that in mind. And this, by the way, the Texas are not playing well, but they're still going to the playoffs. He's still in a quote unquote down year has them in the playoffs. Right. Now I get it's a bad to bad division. Rays are in a tougher division, but let's again, no doubt, but let's remember, let's also remember, scheduling is concerned. When you consider scheduling, the Texans are playing a first place schedule this season. We leave the Rays are playing a second place schedule. And we know over the past couple of games when Aina Cosplay, well, they are playing teams. They beat teams, Jaguars and Saints with backup quarterbacks, bad teams that combine record of what nine and 23. So I just want to put some context in mind when you look at those numbers. Yeah, that's a great context. Very important too. I would also add to that again, it goes back to what I've been saying. I saw some people with the slander against gente out of Boise, because they did they got beat by Penn State handling. He still had 103 yards, even though they were putting nine in the box, almost every friggin down. And it just goes back to people watching football. If you watch the Texans, even if you don't watch them, if you just keep up with the NFL overall, you would also know that C.J. Stroud's been injured most of the year. Okay. And and and he's played through it. We saw Max Crosby do that, of course, until the last few weeks. So same kind of mentality of competitors. So you add in the tough schedule, you add in all this stuff. And look, Aiden Hockonnell got hurt too. But the thing that I think is so dangerous. And I say this because the one thing we always try to do with people who listen to the show, Mo, as fans, as members of Raider Nation is to always be upfront, honest with them. And they don't always have to agree with our opinions because they're just our opinions. But we never try to sell them false hope, or in this case, a false football Messiah, because what it does to me is it underscores, or excuse me, undermines the importance of the Raiders finding the franchise quarterback. Now, maybe they can't do it this year. We'll talk about that. But to me, that's the point. So then you get a lot of people who are saying, Oh, we'll see, he's just as good. Look at his numbers. We don't need another quarterback. Not true. I think it's absolutely false. And if you talk to anybody around the league that is respectful of, or should say, is respected, the guys that you watch and listen to, all that kind of stuff, they all agree. They like Aiden Hockonnell. They think he's developing. They think he can be a good quarterback. No question. But again, I think I'm not going to sell you unicorns and rainbows as you as you coined the term Mo long time ago, just because I want to make you feel good. No, we're going to tell you what I think. And I just don't believe again. It's not negative. You've you've had people come at you with comments here. Why are you negative? We're not negative about Aiden Hockonnell. It's just limitations. People have limitations. And he that he is what he is. I think the counter argument is that if Aiden Hockon had been drafted in the first or second round that we would view him differently, it's because he's a fourth rounder that we're not willing to give him a chance beyond being a back and quarterback. But okay, so let's take that scenario. If Aiden Hockonnell was a first or second round pick, I would expect him to have won the job outright this past all season. If he were a first or second round pick, I would have questions as I'm saying, okay, it's your second year and you couldn't beat out Garna Minchu who couldn't complete 50% of his passes in the preseason. You expect a first or second round pick as a quarterback to to be the guy by year two. If he's not the guy or year one, you're expecting him to come out there and win the job year two. And if he isn't winning the job of year two, you're asking questions. Think about that. So let's say C.J. Stroud, where they picked him and he C.J. Stroud didn't win the job by year two. You'd be asking, wow, he must really suck at practice. Right? If a first or second round pick is not the starting quarterback by week one of his second year, you're like, man, he must be terrible. Yeah. So if you want to play that game and say Aiden Hockonnell was a first or second round pick, we'll be looking at him differently, I wouldn't. I'd be saying, why isn't he the outright guy yet? Right? Same situation. And he had the and we talked about this in the pre-season move. He had the advantage. Remember, Aiden Hockonnell helped Antonio Pierce get the job full-time, because when he played well at the end of the season and they won the game in Kansas City, now he had a bad game in that game. But overall, he played well most of that part that he started because Pierce came in and made him the starter, right? As soon as he took over. So he had a vested interest. So he had the advantage. So the fact that he didn't win out the job against Minshu, it wasn't like Pierce didn't like O'Connell and was pining for Minshu. He got Minshu and he made the choice. So that's my point too, is that he couldn't beat out the veteran for the job, but yet you want to compare him to other quarterbacks in the league. And look, I'm okay with comparisons. And like you said, the numbers, you can look at numbers, but again, you have to look at what's behind the numbers. And yes, yes, O'Connell's had different offensive coordinators, but there's also examples of other NFL quarterbacks who've had multiple offensive coordinators look at Baker Mayfield, right? He lost his offensive coordinator last year. Now, Liam Cone steps in and what happens? That was even better. So you can say, and yeah, they're better coordinators, that's for sure. But it's just interesting to me because what I don't want it to do is distract people from looking at that you always need to upgrade your positions, no matter where they are and who you have. Now, you strike gold and you get one of these guys at quarterback, these guys that have liked, if you're getting Lamar Jackson, yeah, okay, you don't, you're not looking to improve the quarterback position every year. Clearly you signed and you committed to a big deal. But to put it on that, I think same stage and say, hey, he's just as good. No, you can't do that because I think it gives, it gives fans just a take that isn't based in reality because you're not giving them the full truth of what's behind those numbers. Really quick, Scott. I think it's a bit of, I think a lot of people fall victim to recency bias. Yes. Right. So you see this a lot with college prospects, when you're talking about evaluating, we're not evaluating, but ranking or comparing players, you brought the Ashton Johnny situation, right? Right. When he, Boise State struggled as a team against Penn State, clearly not in the same class as Penn State. And I saw takes that people were saying, gente is, is just a guy. He's a jazz on the, on the pro level. He's not going to be very good. Look at him. He can't run on Penn State's defense. By the way, Scott Penn State has a top 10 run defense across the nation. One of the best run defenses in, in college football. As you said, gente still ramp over 100 yards. So by the way, I think this is another problem we have with evaluating running backs and run games. The running back isn't the only part of the run game. Watch the Boise State offensive line get pushed back by the Penn State defensive line Penn State, one in the trenches there. Oh, so it's a crime that gente can't, can't get these big, uh, chunk yard games within when his offensive line doesn't get a push. I think that's what 96 98% of running backs in the league. If their offensive line can't create holes, what are they doing? Now there's still some plays where he created something out of nothing. But I think we fall, we fall victim to the last thing we saw is our, is our sweeping evaluation of a player and we forget about the complete body of work. So to go to take it back to the CJ Stroud anal count situation. Are we forgetting that CJ Stroud uplifted his team from nothing to something last year? One offensive rookie of the year had a bunch of game winning drives. They were there. He was what Jay and Daniels is this year. We were talking the same way about CJ Stroud last year. Oh man, the Texans are down by five. They need a touchdown and CJ Stroud brought them down the field and he got them to win. Now again, he's not playing well this year. I don't give excuses. We could talk about injuries. We could talk about whatever, but his team is still going to the playoffs with a first place schedule. And if you put, and you can't tell me that if you put Davis Mills back there, who was the backup for the Texans, that they would have the same record. Agreed. And I even had somebody tell me, before we go to the break, I had somebody tell me, we just, you have a friendly conversation and somebody tell me online that, well, you know, I just agree with you guys that the quarterback is the number one priority because look at the Bengals. Look what Joe Burroughs doing, and they're not going to the playoffs. I'm like, what? Like, again, understand what's happening in Cincinnati. The Bengals are putting up 30 plus points almost every game and they lose because of defense, but he's all I reminded this gentleman. I said, remember, they won an ASA championship and they went to another one. That's two times in the last four years. They went to the Super Bowl with the Super Bowl. So yeah, it matters. But anyway, and I think, again, as we've said, continuously on the show, Aden O'Connell should be a Raider for a long time. And I think he's the guy that you can trust to be that guy in the backup position. And he may end up starting next year. We're going to get into that as we move along in the next few weeks, depending on what they do. But let's be realistic when we compare them to other talents around the league based on your point mode, which is you can't look at it just from recency. You can't just look at it from specific numbers because yes, C.J. Strauss fallen back this year for a lot of different reasons. And and you can't just wish that away and say, well, forget about what he did before. So anyway, that's that's what I wanted to talk about this as well. All right, we're going to take our final break and then we're going to get right to your calls here on Silver and Black today. Got a bunch of them today. Want to get to those and see how you're feeling before we head into the final week of the season here on Silver and Black today. And obviously sports original podcast heard on the radio. 105 FM cadon in Las Vegas and 98 five the bet as well. And don't forget our good friends at bet us bring you the video where you can get 150% sign up bonus up to $2,000 is using the promo code YouTube 150. That's YouTube 150. Scott Moe, coming back right after this building a portfolio with Fidelity basket portfolios. It's kind of like making a sandwich. It's as simple as picking your stocks and ETFs sort of like your meats and other topics and managing it as one big juicy investment. That's pretty good. Learn more at Fidelity.com/baskets investing involves risks, including risk of loss. Fidelity broker services LLC. Member NYSC SIPC.
The guys discuss the status of Aidan O'Connell, his play this season and what his future may look like.
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