Derek Carr wore No. 4 as he set numerous franchise records during his nine seasons as Raiders quarterback. On Thursday, he crossed paths with the current No. 4 for Las Vegas, quarterback Aidan O’Connell.
They ran into each other at the first home match in team history for the Vegas Thrill, a women’s professional volleyball team. Here they are paying respect to one another as Carr notices O’Connell sitting courtside, courtesy of Logan Reever of 8 News Now.
#Raiders QBs of past and present linking up pic.twitter.com/O2kQhTAg1A
— Logan Reever (@loganreever) February 16, 2024
Judging from their interaction, Carr has no hard feelings about O’Connell taking his number — and eventually the starting quarterback job he used to hold with the Raiders. Carr started for the Saints last season and produced mixed results.
According to Reever, O’Connell’s wife Jael O’Connell is good friends with Maddie Schermerhorn, a star on the Thrill. The Thrill posted a video of Carr and O’Connell as well.
@raiders 🤝 @saints 🤝Vegas Thrill#JoinTheRide | #RealProVolleyball #ProVolleyball #volleyball #volleyballplayer #volleyballislife #volleyballteam #volleyballlife #volleyballgame #volleyballplayers #womensvolleyball pic.twitter.com/0isGcjNHTU
— Vegas Thrill (@vegasthrillvb) February 16, 2024
Carr spoke glowingly of Las Vegas when the Raiders moved there in 2020 and bought a home there, so it’s apparent he hasn’t lost his love for the city. It also seems he’s over the rocky ending to his Raiders tenure.
But back to the current No. 4 for the Raiders. Here’s O’Connell enjoying the action at the match.
Like AOC is INTO it (as is all of Vegas) https://t.co/8thCRohlsI pic.twitter.com/nDypMfN7qo
— Logan Reever (@loganreever) February 16, 2024
O’Connell performed admirably after taking over for quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo midseason, under the direction of then interim coach Antonio Pierce. Overall, O’Connell posted a 5-5 record as a starter in 2023, his rookie campaign.
New Raiders general manager Tom Telesco will undoubtedly bring in another quarterback or two to compete with O’Connell In 2024. But he’s proven to be a viable option as an NFL signal caller, as a backup at the very least. For now, O’Connell can shake hands with a quarterback he replaced and enjoy some pro volleyball with his loved one as he supports Las Vegas sports.
