Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

The Oakland Raiders are fresh off their first road win of the 2013 season. A victory they achieved with their 2nd string QB as their starter nursed a sprained MCL in his right knee. Now they get set to prepare to host the Titans with some good fortune at their disposal. Their backup played so well in the road victory, they don’t have to rush back their starter, risking further/permanent damage to his knee.

As well as McGloin played, the paragraph above is as far as I’m willing to go and how I think the Raiders will handle this. Pryor is hurting and now there is no need to rush him back. Give McGloin a few more starts until Pryor is fully healthy. After all, Pryor’s running ability is the best part of his game right now. Having him out there on one leg is hurting the team and can possibly permanently hurt him as well.

This also gives McGloin a chance to prove his worth and show whether or not he can be consistent. Something you need to be in order to win in the NFL. He will be facing a Titans team that likes to blitz, unlike the Texans this past Sunday. This will be another good test of his decision-making and accuracy. Another opportunity for this staff to evaluate what they have in this undrafted rookie.

I think this will give the Raiders a chance to evaluate Pryor and his maturity. Pryor admitted in a recent Sports Illustrated article by Jim Trotter, that the last two years when he was 3rd on the depth chart, he was the last one to arrive for meetings and the first to leave once they were done. Per the article, his attitude was, “I figured, ‘Hey, if they don’t want me to play …'”. If McGloin gets hot and the Raiders go with the hot hand, how will Pryor handle it? Will he revert to the attitude he had the past two years? Or will he grind with his team mates, helping the team in any way he can?

Greg Pappa said Monday on his weekly radio show, that after this win, the team was as excited and energized as it had been all season. He said if Pryor started against the Titans there would be mutiny in the locker room. He also floated the idea of going back to having a package for Pryor, like the Raiders had been planning in the offseason. Interesting tidbits from the voice of the Oakland Raiders who travels on the teams charter.

The way I see it, nothing but good can come out of this situation. You start McGloin until he has a horrible game and it should be coming, he is a rookie. Hopefully at that point Pryor is healthy enough to warrant a decision. Grade 1 MCL sprains can be a 1-3 week injury. Grade 2 can be up to a month. In between then, you get to see McGloin get extensive playing time. Pryor will either commit himself to the craft even more or revert to pouting. McGloin will either prove he can play or he won’t. No matter the outcome, the Raiders will be better served going into the offseason, as they will have a better understanding of the QB’s on their roster. A blessing in disguise thanks to a breakout game from their rookie.