Aidan O’Connell injury update: Raiders QB carted off with leg in aircast vs. Buccaneers

The Raiders were already eliminated from playoff contention when they woke up Sunday, but a narrow loss to the Chiefs on Black Friday offered hope that Aidan O’Connell could give the offense a spark down the stretch just as he did late last season. 

Those hopes unraveled quickly Sunday, as O’Connell went down with a potentially significant leg injury against the Buccaneers.

The former Purdue standout was off to a rocky start in Tampa Bay, though the Raiders’ defense managed to keep O’Connell and the team within striking distance after allowing two early touchdowns. With O’Connell joining Gardner Minshew on the sidelines, though, Las Vegas’ quarterback situation is suddenly dire.

Here are the latest updates on O’Connell’s injury and his status going forward.

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Aidan O’Connell injury update

O’Connell was carted off with an aircast around his left leg after taking a hard hit on Sunday. He was ruled out with a knee injury minutes after leaving the field.

The 26-year-old was hit by Buccaneers DL Calijah Kancey just after throwing the ball to Jakobi Meyers. Meyers hauled in O’Connell’s pass for a short gain, but O’Connell stayed down on the field in pain.

The aircast is a sign of a potential fracture, though the Raiders haven’t elaborated on the injury beyond labeling it a knee ailment.

Raiders coach Antonio Pierce said after the loss that O’Connell’s injury “doesn’t look good.”

Desmond Ridder entered the game for O’Connell, who was starting in place of Minshew after the veteran quarterback suffered a broken collarbone two weeks earlier. O’Connell, meanwhile, already missed time with a fractured thumb earlier in the season.

Las Vegas fears that O’Connell has suffered a season-ending knee injury, but he will undergo more tests. The Raiders only have four games left, so it could be an injury bad enough to force him to injured reserve, which would end his season instead of being a torn ligament. We won’t know the extent of the injury until those extra tests are completed. 

Raiders QB depth chart

* — Out with injury.

The Raiders have had a hard time keeping quarterbacks healthy, as O’Connell only returned from a fractured thumb after Minshew went down with a broken collarbone two weeks ago.

With each quarterback injured, Ridder is now the the top healthy quarterback on the Raiders’ roster. The former Falcons starter was signed off the Cardinals’ practice squad after Minshew’s injury in October. Atlanta traded him to Arizona in March, only for Ridder to lose the backup job behind Kyler Murray and land on the practice squad after passing through waivers unclaimed. 

Should Ridder go down, the only other option for Las Vegas at the moment is Carter Bradley. Bradley, the son of Colts defensive coordinator Gus Bradley, went undrafted out of South Alabama in the spring and spent the offseason with the Raiders before joining the practice squad at the end of training camp.