With the departure of Bruce Gradkowski and the signing of Al Saunders as the Oakland Raiders new offensive coordinator, it looked as though Al Davis was showing confidence in Jason Campbell as the unquestioned starter going into the 2011 season.
Then, during the NFL draft, there were rumors that the Raiders were going to trade up in the second round in order to draft University of Nevada at Reno quarterback Colin Kaepernick. While they were unable to get the trade done, the fact that they were interested drew questions of how confident the Raiders were in their incumbant starter at the quarterback position.
This morning, Football News Now is reporting that the Raiders are pursuing other options at quarterback, all of whom would likely come into camp and have an actual opportunity to compete for the starting job.
The report on Football News Now lists Vince Young, Trent Edwards and Marc Bulgeras potential targets for the Raiders. All three players have had some success at the NFL level and would certainly push Jason Campbell in the pre-season.
Vince Young showed in his rookie season that he can play in the NFL. Unfortunately, since then, he has had issues off the field and has not been able to regain that form. Young is a risk, but one which could pay off.
Trent Edwards is a local product out of Stanford. He has a strong arm and would fit the Raiders style of offense. He has not shown a lot in his professional career, but it should be noted that his only significant starting time has come with the dreaful Buffalo Bills. Perhaps in the right situation he could still thrive, I am just not sure the Raiders would be that situation.
Marc Bulger is probably the most exciting of the three. Bulger has had some very good years in his NFL career. He was a back up in Baltimore last season but easily could have started for a number of teams. His experience and skill set would make him the most likely to unseat Campbell as the starting quarterback should be be signed by the Raiders.
Things are really starting to heat up for the Raiders as they have become very active players in the free agent market, or at least the rumors would suggest as much.
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