Who Should I Start? Tyrod Taylor or Aidan O'Connell

Tuesday, February 25, 8:42 PM

Both New York Jets general manager Darren Mougey and head coach Aaron Glenn made it clear that veteran quarterback Tyrod Taylor is a candidate for the starting job in 2025, although Glenn isn't willing to commit to Taylor as the Week 1 starter. The Jets are designate Aaron Rodgers as a post-June 1 cut, so their decision on who to replace the future Hall of Famer with under center will be the main topic of conversation for the Jets this offseason. The Jets could look to move up from No. 7 overall in this year's draft to take one of the top signal-callers, and they've also been tied to Pittsburgh Steelers impending free-agent QB Justin Fields. A trade could be another avenue the Jets consider, with Los Angeles Rams QB Matthew Stafford being the biggest name potentially available. Taylor has started 58 games in his NFL career, although he hasn't started more than six games in a season since 2017 with the Bills.

Friday, April 11, 12:07 PM

The Las Vegas Raiders signed quarterback Geno Smith to a two-year, $75 million contract extension this offseason, but it's extremely team-friendly, and The Athletic's Vic Tafur thinks bringing in a young QB in this year's NFL draft to learn behind Smith makes sense. Tafur also thinks the Raiders might trade backup Aidan O'Connell on draft weekend. The Raiders have a clear out with Smith after 2026, as they guaranteed only $18.5 of his $26.5 million 2026 salary, and none of the $39.5 million he's due to make in 2027. Minority owner Tom Brady likes the idea of rookie QBs sitting and learning, and the Raiders will have some interesting options later in the draft in what is considered a down year for QBs. Tafur doesn't think it makes much sense to take Colorado's Shedeur Sanders at No. 6 overall, and a good number of QBs could be off the board by the team's second pick at No. 37 overall.