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Last year, the Raiders tried a lot of different things in an attempt to fix their wide receiver corps. One thing they did was trade for Trevor Davis, who has blistering speed. He had a chance to start some games but didn’t even finish the season on the roster as he was cut after a really bad game.
He signed with the Miami Dolphins shortly after but they didn’t stick with him after the season. He’s now getting another chance with the Washington Football Team.
Davis can run as fast as anybody but his call security issues are his downfall. He had three fumbles last season and that was a big reason the Raiders let him go. If he can figure out how to hold onto the ball, he could be a decent weapon for a team, especially in the return game.
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Raiders Embracing Deep Ball
The Davis experiment didn’t work for the Raiders last season but they were able to add another speedster in Henry Ruggs. Though the rookie hasn’t been perfect, he’s definitely a big reason why the team is launching deep balls more often. For years, many have criticized quarterback Derek Carr for not going deep often but that’s changing this season. He believes the team has fully embraced taking more deeps shots.
“Yeah, it’s something that when we get all our guys rolling and healthy, that’s a part of what Coach wants to do,” Carr said. “There’s a rhythm to it, too. The play calling, the game planning, you know who you have every week, and you start, ‘Oh, that looks good. Now we can do this. Or now we can do that off of this.’ All that kind of stuff.
“Now it’s just becoming who we are.”
Carr has always been one of the better deep ball passers in the NFL but he hasn’t been blessed with great wide receiver play. The Raiders have finally given him some talented pass catchers and he’s showing what he can do.
Jon Gruden Praises Carr
There has been a lot of speculation in the media about how Carr and head coach Jon Gruden don’t get along. There isn’t any evidence that is actually true and Gruden has gone out of the way to praise his quarterback on a ton of occasions. He recently credited Carr for his recent improvements.
“Yeah, he’s clearly improved his footwork,” Gruden said. “I think, each of the last couple of years. I think the supporting cast has also improved. His accuracy on the field has been impressive. His mobility in the pocket has been good. He’s been really accurate. I see improvement in a lot of areas.
“And he has extended some plays. Big first down the other day, scrambled for a touchdown pass against Buffalo. Some memorable plays with his feet this year and we’re excited about that.”
The season is still early but Carr is proving that he’s likely the Raiders’ quarterback of the future.
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