HENDERSON, Nev. (AP) — The Raiders' quarterback battle between Aidan O'Connell and Gardner Minshew has been even and coach Antonio Pierce is ready for the competition to end.
He said Sunday that he hopes to name a starter after Las Vegas hosts the Dallas Cowboys in a preseason game Saturday. The Raiders will then have just one exhibition left, Aug. 23 against the San Francisco 49ers, before the season begins.
“We've got to get ready to play football,” Pierce said. “We've got enough film. We'll have two games in to evaluate.”
He said he hasn't determined which quarterback will start, but like in Saturday's 24-23 preseason loss at Minnesota each will get a quarter of action.
O'Connell, who went 5-4 after becoming the starter last season, opened the game against the Vikings behind center. He drove Las Vegas 83 yards on 15 plays before the series stalled on a sack and resulted in a field goal. O'Connell completed 7 of 9 passes for 76 yards.
“I think it was solid, but a few things I need to work out," O'Connell said after the game. “It will never be perfect, no matter how much you play. I definitely know I have a few things that need to be corrected.”
Minshew, who nearly led the Indianapolis Colts into the playoffs last season, played the second quarter, leading the offense to 17 points. He finished 6 of 12 for 117 yards and a 20-yard touchdown pass to DJ Turner.
“I’ve never been on a team where one quarterback plays the whole time (in preseason),” Minshew said. “There’s going to be an opportunity. We both have to hang in there and lead the offense when we’re in.”
By the time both quarterbacks left the game, the Raiders had a 20-7 lead.
“I thought both guys were efficient,” Pierce said. “I thought there were some opportunities that Minshew made down the field that were really good. When it's a clean pocket, you can see what this offense can be with both guys.
"I thought Aidan did a really good job of being backed down in the red zone and Gardner with the two-minute drill. Everything we wanted to get out of preseason (opener), we got.”
Three key pieces were missing offensively.
Star wide receiver Davante Adams remained on paternity leave for the birth of his son, but Pierce said he was back with the team.
Pierce also was hopeful two potential starting offensive linemen will return next week. Left tackle Kolton Miller and left guard Jackson Powers-Johnson have been on the physically unable to perform list. Miller is rated by Pro Football Focus as the NFL's 10th-best tackle, and Powers-Johnson was a second-round draft pick this year out of Oregon.
Pierce said if he had a do-over against the Vikings, he probably wouldn't have used all his timeouts at the end of the game.
He called his first timeout with 49 seconds left and the Raiders ahead 23-21. The Vikings had third-and-3 at Las Vegas' 39-yard line, and Pierce hoped to force a field goal and get the ball back in time to try to score, if necessary.
But Minnesota picked up the first down. Pierce then used his final two timeouts even though he couldn't prevent the Vikings from running down the clock to kick the winning field goal, which is what happened.
“Lesson learned,” said Pierce, who is entering his first season as the full-time coach after going 5-4 as the interim last year. “We thought maybe it would play out a little differently.”
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Las Vegas Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce talks to his players before an NFL preseason football game against the Minnesota Vikings, Saturday, Aug. 10, 2024, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/3387204Name)
Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Gardner Minshew II (15) scramble past Minnesota Vikings linebacker Andre Carter II (55) during the first half of an NFL football game Saturday, Aug. 10, 2024, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Aidan O'Connell (12) throws against the Minnesota Vikings during the first half of an NFL football game Saturday, Aug. 10, 2024, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn)
BANGKOK (AP) — Search teams in Myanmar recovered more bodies from the ruins of buildings on Friday, a week after a massive earthquake killed more than 3,100 people, as the focus turns toward the urgent humanitarian needs in a country already devastated by a continuing civil war.
United Nations humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher, who is also the emergency relief coordinator, arrived Friday in Myanmar in an effort to spur action following the March 28 quake. Ahead of the visit, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres appealed to the international community to immediately step up funding for quake victims “to match the scale of this crisis,” and he urged unimpeded access to reach those in need.
“The earthquake has supercharged the suffering with the monsoon season just around the corner,” he said.
Myanmar's military and several key armed resistance groups have all declared ceasefires in the wake of the earthquake to facilitate the flow of humanitarian aid.
But the U.N.'s Human Rights Office on Friday accused the military of continuing attacks, claiming there were more than 60 attacks after the earthquake, including 16 since the military announced a temporary ceasefire on Wednesday.
“I urge a halt to all military operations, and for the focus to be on assisting those impacted by the quake, as well as ensuring unhindered access to humanitarian organizations that are ready to support,” said U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said. “I hope this terrible tragedy can be a turning point for the country towards an inclusive political solution.”
Announcing its ceasefire, the military also said it would still take “necessary” measures against resistance groups, if they use the ceasefire to regroup, train or launch attacks, and the groups have said they reserved the right to defend themselves.
Myanmar’s military seized power in 2021 from the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi, sparking what has turned into a civil war.
The quake worsened an already dire humanitarian crisis, with more than 3 million people displaced from their homes and nearly 20 million in need even before it hit, according to the United Nations.
Myanmar authorities said Thursday that 3,145 people had been killed in the earthquake, with another 4,589 people injured and 221 missing, and did not immediately update the figures on Friday.
Britain, which had already given $13 million to purchase emergency items like food, water and shelter, pledged an additional $6.5 million in funds to match an appeal from Myanmar's Disasters Emergency Committee, according to the U.K. Embassy in Yangon.
The World Food Program said so far it has reached 24,000 survivors, but was scaling up its efforts to assist 850,000 with food and cash assistance for one month.
Many international search and rescue teams are now on the scene, and eight medical crews from China, Thailand, Japan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, the Philippines, Indonesia and Russia were operating in Naypyitaw, according to Myanmar's military-run government. Another five teams from India, Russia, Laos and Nepal and Singapore were helping in the Mandalay region, while teams from Russia, Malaysia and the ASEAN bloc of nations were assisting in the Sagaing region.
The Trump administration has pledged $2 million in emergency aid and sent a three-person team to assess how best to respond given drastic cuts to U.S. foreign assistance.
On Friday, five bodies were recovered from the rubble in the capital Naypyitaw and the second-largest city of Mandalay, near the epicenter of the 7.7 magnitude earthquake March 28, authorities said. The last reported rescue came Wednesday, some 125 hours after the quake struck, when a man was saved from the wreckage of a hotel in Mandalay.
The quake also shook neighboring Thailand, bringing down a high-rise under construction in Bangkok, where recovery work continued Friday. Overall, 22 people have been found dead and 35 injured in Bangkok, primarily from the construction site.
Associated Press Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations and Jamey Keaten in Geneva contributed to this report.
A Bhutan medical volunteer attends to a patient at their make-shift tent after last week's earthquake in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo)
Patient are seen at a make-shift tent opened for medical care after last week's earthquake in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo)
People work at temporary shelters for people displaced due to the earthquake, in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo)
Bhutanese medical volunteers attend to a patient at a make-shift tent after last week's earthquake in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo)
Russian medical volunteers give treatment to a patient in their make-shift tent opened as a medical center in the aftermath of Friday's earthquake in Mandalay, Myanmar, Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo)
Thai army soldiers lined up for their duty at site of an under construction high-rise building that collapsed after an earthquake in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, April, 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)
Morning joggers look at the at site of an under construction high-rise building that collapsed after an earthquake, as Thai army soldiers lined up for their duty in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, April, 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)
A rescue office Amman Sutthirat talks to media at site of an under construction high-rise building that collapsed after an earthquake in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, April, 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)
A notice board in Thai language shows , center top, number of victims (103) Deceased (15), Injured (9) and Under Tracking (79) at site of an under construction high-rise building that collapsed after an earthquake in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, April, 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)
Russian medical volunteers gather near their make-shift tent opened as a medical center in the aftermath of Friday's earthquake in Mandalay, Myanmar, Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo)
A person watches at site of an under construction high-rise building that collapsed after an earthquake in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, April, 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)
