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The divorce between Derek Carr and the Las Vegas Raiders is in the past but it still remains a talking point in NFL circles. Carr was the starting quarterback for nine years straight but was benched last season following a Week 16 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers where he threw three interceptions.
In his nine years, Carr never won a playoff game and only started in one. However, not everybody believes the struggles were his fault. NFL Hall of Famer and former Dallas Cowboys wide receiver was recently asked about his thoughts on Jimmy Garoppolo taking over for Carr. He called out the Raiders for not always surrounding Carr with enough talent.
“I got to see that play out, Garoppolo had an early great start in New England,” Irvin told Mike Dixon of Vegas Sports Today in a July 30 interview. “He’ll be coming back in that offense, he knows it, that’ll be helpful for him. The Raiders’ problem wasn’t always Carr, their problem was their defense a lot of the time. They would put up a lot of points on other teams, but the defense couldn’t hold up.”
Over his career with the Raiders, Carr never had a defense that finished top-15 in points or yards allowed.
Derek Carr Finishes Ahead of Jimmy Garoppolo in QB Tiers
Debate is likely to rage all season regarding whether or not the Raiders made the right decision to replace Derek Carr with Jimmy Garoppolo. The general thought around the NFL is that Carr is the superior quarterback. According to Mike Sando The Athletic’s NFL Quarterback Tiers posted on July 31, 50 NFL coaches and executives voted Carr as the 14th-best quarterback in the league while Garoppolo came in at 18.
“This is going to be a whole different world for Jimmy back with Josh because now completions are first and the run game, yes, Josh is going to call it, but they don’t live in the wide zone, making plays off the wide zone,” one head coach told Sando. “I think this is going to be a true test of Jimmy. Where exactly are you at in your career as an NFL quarterback? Then you throw in the durability factor.”
Carr and Garoppolo both were placed in the tier three category so many around the NFL that they are around the same level of player.
Andre James Praises Jimmy Garoppolo’s Leadership
Derek Carr was a beloved teammate during his time in Las Vegas but Jimmy Garoppolo is quickly filling the leadership void. Garoppolo doesn’t have the same amount of arm talent as Carr does but he’s impressing teammates with his command of the huddle and leadership ability, according to starting center Andre James.
“It’s been awesome,” James said during his July 28 media availability. “It was funny, it was literally like a couple of days ago it was me and his first time getting snaps together. So, we’re working together. It’s awesome to work with a guy like that, he gives great feedback. He’s a great leader in the huddle, he leads us real well. You want to block and play for a guy like that, so excited to have him.”
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