Raiders Aidan O'Connell's Trade Value Jumps After JJ McCarthy Trade

HENDERSON, Nev.—The Las Vegas Raiders (3-0) are hosting their fellow undefeated AFC West rival, the Kansas City Chiefs (3-0), on Sunday at Allegiant Stadium.

But before the game even kicks off, events around the National Football League have the Silver and Black squarely in the spotlight for other reasons.

Adian O'Connell, Kirk Cousins | Darrell Craig Harris, On SI

The Backstory

If I had told you last November that, after three weeks of the 2026 NFL season, the Las Vegas Raiders could have the most envied quarterback room in the league, you would have laughed me out of the building.

Kirk Cousins leads the league with nine touchdown passes (tied with 49ers QB Brock Purdy) and is firmly entrenched as the QB1.

Additionally, the Raiders have the 2026 No. 1 overall pick, which NFL executives called the best QB prospect of the last four years, as their backup (who hasn’t taken a regular-season snap), Fernando Mendoza. Finally, they have a proven veteran, Aidan O’Connell (AOC), as their third-string QB (on the 53-man roster).

That is a deep room, and things got a lot more interesting this week.

Skyrocketing Value

Earlier this week, the New York Giants traded a fifth-round 2027 NFL Draft pick to the Minnesota Vikings for quarterback JJ McCarthy. But the intrigue goes deeper.

In Week 3, the NFL saw six backup QBs start, and for the first time in the league's history, all six won.

As seasons grow longer and players get bigger, faster, and stronger, the game is changing, and in a league already starved for legitimate and truly valuable QB play, the backup role is evolving.

Brilliance of Thinking Ahead

Legendary NHL head coach Scotty Bowman, now 93, has won no Stanley Cup Finals, and he once told me, when discussing the most important position in the game, some deep thoughts that get more brilliant every day.

_Adian O'Connell | Darrell Craig Harris, On SI

“A position nobody talks about, and should is the backup goaltender. You hope to God you never need him, but when you do, he is the difference between winning a title or not. No question, most undervalued and looked at position in hockey.”

The same is true in football. One of the most critical positions is the backup QB. With limited talent at the position, a long season, and the risk of injuries, teams value the position like never before.

AOC’s Trade Value

The Raiders love and believe in Aidan O’Connell, who has missed time recently due to personal matters with his family. But in the last year of his deal, the team and AOC have no choice but to think about the future.

Consider this. AOC has won seven games as a starting quarterback for the Silver and Black, holding a career starting record of 7-10.

He has played in 21 games, and his career numbers include 3,932 passing yards, 20 touchdowns, 11 interceptions, and a 62 percent completion rate.

Las Vegas Raiders QB Aidan O'Connell | Darrell Craig Harris, On SI

We haven’t seen enough from AOC to know he is a QB1 in this league, but we also haven’t seen enough to know he isn’t.

He has had four head coaches in his four years in the league, and six offensive coordinators. It isn’t like the franchise has given him the best chance to succeed with its 2023 fourth-round pick (135th overall).

If McCarthy, who doesn’t have nearly the numbers as AOC, is worth a fifth, what does that mean for AOC?

We asked some NFL executives, and the answers may shock you.

One said, “We don’t need a backup, but if we did he would be the belle of the ball. I don’t think Mark [Davis] has done much to develop or help him until now (with Kling Kubiak), and the team and the player are going to have some interesting decisions.”

He added, “Kirk [Cousins] isn’t playing much longer, so do you pay the kid more than you want to because he is prove to backup Mendoza, does he want to stick around? If he does, then you resign him now. If you don’t want to pay him, or if he doesn’t want to be a backup, in the last year of his deal you trade him now. Pretty simple scenario, but there is a market for him for sure.”

What could that be? “A five [fifth round], but in the last year of a deal it would be hard to get more, and some might not be able to put their mind around that. If you extended him, then I think it get go higher, perhaps significantly higher depending on the team, the need and the situation.”

The Raiders aren’t shopping AOC, and he isn’t asking for a trade. But the NFL is a business, and the market for a backup QB with proven experience has never been higher.

The JJ McCarthy trade proved that, and each day, GM John Spytek and Klint Kubiak look smarter for keeping him in the fold.

For now.

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