Raiders Wish 'Jimmy G' Happy Birthday on X and Everyone Has Same Joke

Jimmy Garoppolo's birthday arrived under rocky circumstances.

The Las Vegas Raiders fired head coach Josh McDaniels and general manager Dave Ziegler on Wednesday amid a 3-5 start to the 2023 season. And, in another of the many sweeping changes throughout the organization, interim coach Antonio Pierce announced that Garoppolo had been benched in favor of rookie quarterback Aidan O'Connell. The news was delivered just one day before Garoppolo celebrated his 32nd birthday.

"It will be Aidan, going forward," Pierce said during his introductory press conference. "We just feel like it gives us the best chance."

The awkward timing didn't stop the Raiders from wishing their now-backup signal-caller a happy birthday on X, formerly Twitter, on Thursday. The Raiders' official X account sent "Join us in wishing Jimmy Garoppolo Happy Birthday" along with a photo graphic at noon ET. Within 30 minutes, it already had thousands of replies and quotes.

And everyone had pretty much the same joke in response to the post.

Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk quoted the post and mockingly said, "Happy birthday, you're benched." The Action Network replied with a picture of a bench, saying it was the Raiders' birthday gift to the QB. One user in the comments joked, "a consolation happy [birthday] post on the week he gets benched," while another posted a GIF of Mark Wahlberg's character in the 2010 movie The Other Guys yelling, "It's a bad time, Bob."

FanDuel Sportsbook's main account posted a photo of Raiders wide receiver Davante Adams with his head down, captioning it, "Just here to see the replies."

And the comments keep going from there, all with the same theme.

The Raiders signed "Jimmy G" to a three-year, $72.75 million contract this offseason as McDaniels' choice to replace Derek Carr under center. Through six starts this season, the two-time Super Bowl champion threw for 1,205 yards, seven touchdowns, and a league-leading nine interceptions despite missing 2 1/2 games due to injury.

O'Connell, a rookie fourth-round pick, already made one start this season in Week 4 when Garoppolo was out with a concussion. The Purdue product completed 24-of-29 passes for 238 yards in a 24-17 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers. O'Connell threw an interception and took seven sacks in the loss.

Veteran Brian Hoyer started for the Raiders in their Week 7 loss to the Chicago Bears, the last time Garoppolo missed a game.

"The guys are rallying behind him," interim general manager Champ Kelly said of O'Connell. "They're excited to watch him get his opportunity. I was there as A.P. [Pierce] was speaking to the team and he had their eyes. There was an energy that was tangible in the room. There was a true excitement and guys are geared up to prepare for this weekend."

Garoppolo, the former New England Patriots and San Francisco 49ers QB who has often dealt with injuries over his professional career, returned for a 26-14 loss to the Detroit Lions on Monday Night Football in Week 8. He completed only 10 passes and threw a pick.

Raiders owner Mark Davis officially announced the team's firings the next day.

"After much thought about what the Raiders need to move forward, I have decided to part ways with Josh and Dave," Davis said in a statement. "I want to thank them both for their hard work and wish them and their families nothing but the best."