McDaniels says Raiders ‘dodged a big bullet’ with Garoppolo injury
Oct 16, 2023, 3:55 PM | Updated: 3:57 pm
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - OCTOBER 15: Jimmy Garoppolo #10 of the Las Vegas Raiders walks off the field in the first half against the New England Patriots at Allegiant Stadium on October 15, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Sam Morris/Getty Images)
(Photo by Sam Morris/Getty Images)
Las Vegas Raiders coach Josh McDaniels says the team “dodged a big bullet” after quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo suffered an injury Sunday.
Garoppolo reportedly suffered a back injury in the second quarter. Then after halftime, CBS reported that the quarterback was taken to a local hospital. On Monday, McDaniels spoke to the media, providing an update on his quarterback.
“There was some concern yesterday that there was an internal issue. We did a bunch of scans yesterday and last night. Seems like we’ve dodged a big bullet in that regard, so that’s good news,” McDaniels said. “We’re still doing a couple things this morning and we’ll kind of make sure we do all the right things here as we go forward. But the prognosis is a lot better than it might have otherwise been. Don’t know yet for this week, relatively speaking. So, there’s a lot still to, I’d say, uncover in that regard. But good news relative to what it might have been.”
Before he left the game, Garoppolo threw for 162 yards with a 12-yard touchdown throw to fellow Patriots alum Jakobi Meyers. Backup Brian Hoyer finished the game for the Raiders, helping them secure their third win of the season.
McDaniels will have options if Garoppolo isn’t able to play in Week 7 against the Chicago Bears. Rookie Aidan O’Connell has already started one game for the Raiders in Week 4 against the Los Angeles Chargers. O’Connell got the start because Garoppolo was in the NFL’s concussion protocols.
“The fact that we’ve played three guys already certainly doesn’t hurt. It’s not ideal in terms of what you want to do,” McDaniels said of Hoyer and O’Connell. :But they both got game experience, they both have had to operate our offense in critical situations in close games. So, that’s helpful for them too.”
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