Big things are expected from Raiders when they move to Las Vegas. They will be in a new city, playing in a new stadium. With a massive draft capital, there will be new faces on their roster next year. But, one big-name could be gone from their payroll. Stories are starting to circle that Derek Carr, Oakland’s starting QB won’t be part of the team going forward.
Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports claims that Raiders are exploring the possibility of a change at the sports most crucial position. According to him, some staff members are not satisfied with Carr’s contribution going forward. They believe that Derek doesn’t have enough upside to remain their QB in the coming years. Raiders are looking for a strong start in the first few seasons in Vegas. They believe that Carr doesn’t have what it takes to give them needed results.
According to La Canfora, Gruden wants a more athletic QB, such as Lamar Jackson and DeShaun Watson. He also believes that Gruden is already looking at options available in the 2024 draft class.
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In 2016 Derek Carr had a breakout season. He threw for 3.937 yards on 63.8 percent completion. This resulted in 28 touchdowns and only six interceptions. Raiders reached playoffs that year, the first time after the 2002 season. Carr led the team to a 12-3 score before missing the rest of the season due to injury. After he recovered, Derek didn’t look the same. His stats dropped. This was also because of changes in coaching staff and roster.
This year he looked better with 3.372 yards on 70 percent completion. He also has 19 touchdowns and eight interceptions, Raiders still can reach the playoffs but only if other results go their way. Another thing that goes in Carr’s favor is the number of sacks on him. During the last two seasons, he was sacked 75 times. It’s not easy to produce when you are pressured continuously due to O-line not doing their job.
Gruden and Carr have a good relationship, but this might not be enough for Derek to preserve his job. What Gruden wants out of a quarterback is to extend plays with his legs, and at a time to be a pure gunslinger and Carr often does neither. Because of this, we could see a new name instead of Carr in Las Vegas.
The names that started popping put as those on Raiders’ radar are Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa or Oregon’s Justin Herbert.
Nicola Holder