Entering 2025 Training Camp, Raiders.com is previewing every position group and evaluating the players who will make up the 53-man roster. We begin with the head of the operation, the quarterback room.

New players

Over the last three seasons, Geno Smith has emerged as one of the league's better quarterbacks under the direction of Pete Carroll.

After a disappointing first two seasons as the New York Jets' starting quarterback, he was relegated to being a backup for the next six seasons. He spent time with the New York Giants and Los Angeles Chargers before signing with the Seattle Seahawks in 2020, winning back a starting job two seasons later.

He was selected to two Pro Bowls and led the NFL in passing completion in 2022. It's also worth noting he didn't suffer a single losing season in his time as the starter in Seattle. After Carroll was named head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders, he and General Manager John Spytek made it a priority to trade for Smith and sign him to a multi-year extension.

Throughout OTAs and minicamp, his abilities have spoken for themselves as he's showcased his pinpoint accuracy down the field to his new receivers Tre Tucker, Dont'e Thornton Jr. and Jakobi Meyers. The deep ball is a patented part of Smith's game which the Raiders are hopeful to unleash on opposing defenses. Smith has the highest deep ball passer grade (99.9) from Pro Football Focus of any quarterback since 2022.

"Geno is a natural leader," Carroll said during minicamp. "He has developed over the years through all hard knocks and the tough ways that he's come up through it all to be a great competitor, and he knows to be a great competitor, you have to go for every opportunity that you have. And that's what he's done."

The Raiders brought in another quarterback who can move the ball down the field by selecting Cam Miller with the No. 215 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. Miller owns several school records at North Dakota State in career pass completions (759), passing yards (9,721) and completion percentage (69.4 minimum 200 attempts). His mobility also made him a viable option, having recorded 2,277 yards and 48 touchdowns on the ground in his collegiate career.

But the most important statistic to factor in for Miller – win percentage. As the Bison starting quarterback, he went 45-11, the third most wins in FCS history by a quarterback. This also came with two FCS national championship wins in 2021 and 2024.

"[H]is record at North Dakota State is outstanding. He's really, really competitive, very tough, very athletic," said Brandon Yeargan, Raiders director of college scouting. "I think when you watch the tape and when you get to meet the guy, he's got some unique qualities in terms of leadership and football character."

Returning players

Aidan O'Connell enters his third NFL season with 17 career starts under his belt.

In his rookie season, he became the full-time starter in Week 9 in place of Jimmy Garoppolo. He finished the season with a 5-5 record. In 2024, he went back and forth with Gardner Minshew for the starting job, with injuries dampening O'Connell's sophomore campaign.

"It was fun to follow Aidan O'Connell at Purdue and the success that he had there," quarterbacks coach Greg Olson said. "Then to see him come in and play as a young player, which is not easy to do. He faced his own set of adversities here in Vegas. I've got a lot of respect for the way he played the game this past season.

While being the eighth quarterback selected in the 2023 NFL Draft, his 3,830 passing yards and 20 touchdowns rank fourth among all quarterbacks in his draft class.

Carter Bradley, a 2024 UDFA from South Alabama, spent the majority of his rookie season with the Raiders on the practice squad. He ultimately signed to the active roster heading into Week 15 but did not see action in any games. His father, Gus Bradley, was a defensive coordinator under Pete Carroll for three seasons.