Getty Derek Carr & Darren Waller of the Las Vegas Raiders.
The Las Vegas Raiders hit rock bottom in Week 10 when they lost to the Indianapolis Colts at home. They dropped to 2-7 and there were major questions regarding the future of the franchise. After the Colts loss, quarterback Derek Carr held back tears at the postgame press conference.
He’s been the starter for nine years and he let the frustration show. Instead of falling apart, the Raiders came together and won three straight games. It’s never a great sign when leaders are tearing up in front of the media but the message got across. Star tight end Darren Waller hasn’t been able to play during the winning streak but he has thoughts on the emotion the quarterback showed. In an interview with Heavy Sports, Waller praised Carr for his leadership ability.
“I love it,” Waller said. “His passion is on display. He gives everything that he has, and the only thing he asks of guys on the team, anybody that wears the Raiders logo, is to do their best in return. That’s what you want. You want a guy that cares, not a guy that makes a lot of money and they’re just like ‘oh well.’ He really cares about the game, cares about the people. And when things don’t go the way you want them to, it bothers you. And so I respect the fact that he cares that much. He always has and he always will and that’s why guys on the team are willing to ride for him.”
Carr Praises Character of Raiders
Carr has taken his fair share of shots over the years but nobody can deny he cares deeply about the Raiders. Many other quarterbacks wouldn’t have stuck through the bad times and it has helped him develop as a leader. The players on the roster are rallying around the quarterback but he knows the team’s improvements go beyond him. Following Sunday’s 27-20 win over the Los Angeles Chargers, Carr praised the amount of character his teammates have shown.
“I think the character was on full display today,” Carr said Sunday. “And watching our guys bounce back – I mean, we turned it over again, twice. Why, or the reason, it doesn’t matter; it’s what we did. We just make it hard on ourselves and then seeing everybody bounce back and keep believing, keep playing. The defense was playing great for us, keeping them off the scoreboard and all that. It’s good seeing both sides of the ball helping each other and playing that way, and the energy on the sideline was unbelievable.”
Derek Carr was slinging it all over the field on Sunday. 🎯 (via @NextGenStats)
Carr Talks Response to Emotional Press Conference
No player on the Raiders wanted to see Carr go up to the podium and start tearing it up. Based on how the team has responded, it may have saved the season. Carr was asked about the response from the team since the press conference. He’s much happier with the team than he was just a few weeks ago.
“It was a quick three weeks,” Carr said. “I feel like, for me, I think it was just the frustration and the anger of certain things that I don’t regret. Things needed to be said, things need to be handled. When you love a place and you love an organization, when you love something so much, you put your heart into it. To see the way we’ve responded since then, it’s a proud moment for me. I’m happy about it. But we’ve got a long way to go until I feel really good about it.”