Getty Oakland Raiders QB Derek Carr
It’s been an interesting offseason for the Raiders‘ starting QB Derek Carr. After a subpar season, speculation has been rampant that he might not be a member of the silver and black for long. Rumors that the Raiders would be drafting a quarterback in the 2019 NFL Draft were plentiful and despite the fact that the Raiders didn’t end up drafting a single player at the position, pundits have still been counting Carr out. Carr certainly has the trust of one of his newest teammates Antonio Brown. Teaming up with Brown might be the best thing that’s ever happened to Carr because no player works harder than him and he could give Carr the extra push he needs. With training camp starting this week, Carr will be setting out to prove the doubters wrong.
Derek Carr Sends Strong Message Ahead of Training Camp
Derek Carr recently took to social media to send a message just before training camp starts.
Camp starts tomorrow. No more talking. Let’s find out… see y’all in Napa ✌🏼
The picture Carr posted reads: “We build that trust and see who really wants to turn this thing around, who really wants to turn this thing around, who really wants to do the hard things nobody wants to do. We find out who’s a Raider. – Derek Carr”
“Camp starts tomorrow. No more talking. Let’s find out… see y’all in Napa,” said Carr in the caption.
This has had to be a frustrating offseason for Carr. The aforementioned speculation about him being gone definitely isn’t fun to hear. One second, he gets Antonio Brown and massive offensive lineman Trent Brown, the next second, he’s rumored to be on his way out of town. Regardless, Carr is going to be the QB for the Raiders in 2019, so he’s going to get his chance to prove everybody wrong. He has the talent around him to pull it off. It’s up to him if he can make it happen. It’s understandable that he’s done talking and is ready to work. This time of year, there’s only talking and it’s hard for him to prove himself. He’ll keep getting hate heaped upon him until he can string together some strong games.
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Derek Carr Bashed by Anonymous Executive, Coach
In a piece by The Athletics’ Mike Sando, Derek Carr was ranked as the 20th best QB in the NFL by anonymous coaches and executives. While it’s easy to send a strong message to somebody when commenting anonymously, the comments should be taken with a grain of salt.
“He is sensitive and needs encouragement, and that is not the style he is going to get,” an offensive coach said to Sando. “When someone shows disappointment in him, he shrinks. The head coach not coming out and completely endorsing him has to be eating him alive.”
It’s hard to know how connected this anonymous coach is to the Raiders’ situation, but one bad year in a new offensive system with a new coach and an offense that lacked talent doesn’t necessarily mean Carr is shot or sensitive. This seems like conjecture or the comments of a disgruntled former coach. This coach may be vindicated if Carr continues to struggle, but the fact that Gruden didn’t draft another QB seems like a pretty good endorsement. Now, Carr could very likely be on his way out if he has a bad season. However, saying that he’s a dead man walking is a little premature. Give the man a chance to show what he can do with players like Antonio Brown, Tyrell Williams and Josh Jacobs and then we can talk.
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