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Garbers with Raiders

Raiders' Trade of Nick Mullens Is Good News for Chase Garbers

Suddenly former Cal standout is Las Vegas' No. 3 quarterback, giving him a shot to make the Raiders' regular-season roster
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The Las Vegas Raiders traded quarterback Nick Mullens to the Minnesota Vikings for a conditional 2024 draft pick on Monday, and the biggest beneficiary of the move is former Cal quarterback Chase Garbers.  Or at least that's the way it appears.

Garbers has performed well for the Raiders in their three preseason games, and he got a long look on Saturday when he played the entire second half.  It's very possible that the Raiders were impressed enough with Garbers' preseason performance that they were willing to trade Mullens.

Derek Carr is the Raiders' unquestioned starting quarterback and Jarrett Stidham is Carr's presumptive backup.  Mullens, who has started 17 regular-season NFL games and has performed well enough in the preseason, was the No. 3 quarterback, with Garbers at No. 4.

Some teams keep two quarterbacks for the regular season and some keep three, but as the No. 4 quarterback Garbers seemed destined for some team's practice squad. But now, as the No. 3 quarterback, Garbers has a chance to make the Raiders' regular-season roster.

Teams must cut down to 80 players by tomorrow (Tuesday), then will play one more preseason game this weekend, before the final cut down to 53 players on Tuesday, August 30.

Of course, it is still possible for the Raiders to add a quarterback between now and the start of the regular season, but that seems unlikely, given Garbers' strong performances in the preseason, albeit mostly against backup defenders.

He was particularly impressive scrambling for big gains on Saturday against the Dolphins, running for gains of 28 and 16 yards when he was unable to find a receiver.  In his three preseason games, Garbers is 12-for-18 for 108 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions.

The Raiders may see enough in Garbers to keep him around as a developmental player.  Their decision may depend on how Garbers performs in this weekend's game against the Patriots on Friday night.

That performance may determine whether Garbers makes the 53-man squad after being signed by the Raiders in the spring as an undrafted free agent.

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Cover photo by Rich Story, USA TODAY Sports

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