Las Vegas Raiders making 1 major change as they prepare for Gardner Minshew to start

The Las Vegas Raiders have tried to make an important change to their roster this year as they plan to start Gardner Minshew as their quarterback in Week 1. Head coach Antonio Pierce knew there would be problems in the passing game with Minshew or Aidan O’Connell as the top choices under center this year.

Pierce brought in an offensive coordinator who established a solid running game during his two seasons with the Chicago Bears. Luke Getsy had the Bears become the league’s number-one rushing team in 2022. The Bears ranked No. 2 in rushing last season.

The Las Vegas Raiders want to run

Pierce knows the Raiders need to run the ball effectively this season to give the offense a chance. Per Tashan Reed with The Athletic, Getsy plans to control the clock by running this year.

“We want teams to feel our film,” Getsy said. “They better know that it’s time to buckle it up because we’re ready to run the rock and play a specific style of game.”

The Raiders lost star running back Josh Jacobs in free agency. Running backs Zamir White and Alexander Mattison will lead the Raiders backfield this fall. For the Raiders offense to succeed in the running game, they’ll need the offensive line to make big holes.

The offensive line needs to be mean

Per Reed, Pierce wants the identity of the offensive line to be meaner than it has been in the past so they can run the ball.

“I asked them to change the identity and the mentality of our offensive line to be a little bit nastier, meaner, tougher, and be finishers,” Pierce said. “They’ve done an outstanding job with these guys.”

The Raiders have plenty of pass-catching weapons. The glaring weakness is at quarterback. If the offensive line can give White and Mattison a chance, Getsy can dial up some play-action passes to get playmakers like Davante Adams and rookie tight end Brock Bowers the ball.

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