JIMMY GAROPPOLO SENDS CLEAR MESSAGE ABOUT RAIDERS STARTING QUARTERBACK JOB

Jimmy Garoppolo had his introductory press conference with the Raiders on Friday. It's safe to say he made a strong impression on those in attendance. 

Garoppolo, who signed a three-year, $72.5 million deal this offseason, made it clear that he doesn't want to be given special treatment in Las Vegas.

Even though Garoppolo has a preexisting connection with Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels, he wants to win the starting quarterback job and earn his new teammates' trust.  

“I’m coming with the mindset that I need to earn everything — I don’t want to be given any ‘You’re the franchise guy,’ or whatever,” Garoppolo told reporters, via ESPN. “I want to come in and earn it. I think it will come through hard work, working with the teammates, being in the facility. All those little things will play a role. 

"But yeah, I don’t want to be given anything; I want to earn it. Just because I’m the quarterback, I’m not the leader because of that. I want to be the leader because guys respect me and believe in me. ... I think it will happen naturally. I don’t want to force anything, be inauthentic. I just want to be myself and it’s done me well in the past.”

Garoppolo's teammates in San Francisco always spoke highly of him as a leader. In reality, the only major knock on the veteran signal-caller is that he has a lengthy injury history. 

If Garoppolo can stay healthy though, Las Vegas has more than enough weapons on offense to field an exciting team in 2023.

2023-03-18T19:58:50Z dg43tfdfdgfd