Las Vegas Raiders interim GM Champ Kelly.

Rookie quarterback Aidan O’Connell is entering a pivotal stretch. He has three more games to prove to the Las Vegas Raiders that he deserves a chance to be the starting quarterback next season.

Though he’s coming off a four-touchdown performance with a 120.7 pass waiting against the Los Angeles Chargers, he still hasn’t done enough to solidify himself as a franchise quarterback.

Regardless of what the Raiders decide to do, ESPN’s Bill Barnwell sees the team moving on from Jimmy Garoppolo and bringing in a new veteran quarterback. He specifically mentioned Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Mitch Trubisky as a logical fit due to his ties to Raiders interim general manager Champ Kelly.

“Trubisky could be a bridge option to a rookie or backup to O’Connell,” Barnwell wrote in a December 21 column.

Trubisky was the No. 2 overall pick of the Chicago Bears in the 2017 NFL Draft when Kelly was the assistant director of player personnel. He was there for all four of Trubisky’s seasons with the team. Barnwell gave further details on what he expects Las Vegas to do at quarterback.

“A lot depends on the final three weeks,” Barnwell wrote. “If O’Connell plays well and Pierce wins the interim job, the Raiders might talk themselves into moving forward with the Purdue product for 2024 and re-evaluating after that season, which would probably mean signing a veteran backup like Trubisky.

If not, well, what happens next depends on who the Raiders hire to take over the coach and general manager roles and how much leash they’d have to rebuild the organization.”

Mitch Trubisky Shouldn’t Be a Starter

Despite his status as a former No. 2 pick and a Pro Bowler in 2018, Mitch Trubisky shouldn’t be a starting quarterback on an NFL team. He had a chance to start for the Steelers this season but went 0-2 and was recently benched in favor of Mason Rudolph after throwing four touchdowns to five intercpetions.

Trubisky also started five games last season and threw four touchdowns to five interceptions. He may not even have much upside as a backup considering he hasn’t played well for the Steelers when taking over for the injured starter.

Now, Champ Kelly should know Trubisky better than most and could know how to put him in a position to succeed. However, he should only be brought in to compete for a backup spot and shouldn’t be in the running to start.

Champ Kelly Stresses Importance of QB Position

One thing that could work against Aidan O’Connell is Champ Kelly’s commitment to wanting to get the quarterback position. The interim general manager gave some eye-opening comments about his philosophy.

“As it pertains to my philosophy on team building in the NFL, you must start with the quarterback position,” Kelly told Sports Illustrated’s Hondo Carpenter in a December 20 interview. “The quarterback is one of the most difficult positions to play in all sports. In addition, I believe in building the team from inside out, meaning to start with offensive and defensive fronts.

The key is being able to obtain the quarterback, then be able to protect that player through scheme and skill. Next, we must be able to disrupt the opponent’s passer on the defensive side of the ball through both rush and coverage.”

Kelly clearly believes that the Raiders need to get the quarterback position right if they’re going to go far. If he gets the full-time general manager job, it’s easy to envision him pushing to draft a quarterback early.

Austin Boyd has covered the Las Vegas Raiders and Los Angeles Lakers for Heavy.com since 2019. A Los Angeles native now based on Las Vegas, his featured work at Heavy includes interviews with NFL stars Darren Waller and Joe Montana, and a behind-the-scenes look at “The Shop.”