derek carr
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Former Las Vegas Raiders QB Derek Carr.
It has been a long time since the Las Vegas Raiders were able to field a winner. A big reason for that has been due to inconsistent quarterback play.
The Raiders are hoping that changes with No. 1 pick Fernando Mendoza. Over the last two decades, the team has taken some big swings at quarterback. They drafted JaMarcus Russell with the No. 1 pick in 2007, but he ended up being arguably the biggest draft bust in NFL history.
They’ve swung big trades for Carson Palmer and Jason Campbell, but neither of them caught on long-term. In recent years, the Raiders tried out Jimmy Garoppolo, Gardner Minshew and Geno Smith. All three lasted one season before getting cut.
The only consistent quarterback the Raiders have had over the last two decades was Derek Carr, who is the team’s all-time leader in passing yards and touchdowns. Pro Football Focus went through and named the best player at every position for the Raiders over the last 20 years. Carr was the easy choice at quarterback.
“The Raiders’ offensive core came together relatively easily, as nearly every selection sustained high-level play across multiple seasons,” Jahnke wrote. “They were also one of just three teams to use more 21 personnel than 12 personnel during the PFF era, due in large part to Marcel Reece’s versatility. That personnel preference ultimately left no room for Brock Bowers, despite his outstanding start to his career.”
Is Carr Done Playing?
There was talk of Carr possibly returning to the Raiders to help mentor Mendoza, but the team decided to go with Kirk Cousins. The problem with Carr is that the New Orleans Saints still hold his contract rights, so it’ll take a trade to get him.
Free agency is far in the past, and no teams seemed to make a run at Carr. Though he’s technically retired, he did previously say that he’d be open to returning this season.
“Would I do it? Yes. Would I do it for anybody? Absolutely not,” Carr said on the “Home Grown” podcast back in February.
“Would I do it. Absolutely, I would. I told you two things: I have to be healthy, and I’d want a chance to win a Super Bowl. And obviously, that’s a tough thing to find. That’s hard to do. That’s not easy.”
A Carr return is still possible this season, but it will likely only happen if a notable starter gets hurt and a team gets desperate.
Can Mendoza Finally Be the Answer at QB?
It’s hard to argue against the notion that Carr is the best Raiders quarterback of the last 20 years, but the team would be disappointed if he’s still considered the best quarterback in 20 more years.
The Raiders are hoping Mendoza can be the franchise quarterback the team has needed. While Carr put up good numbers in the past, he didn’t win a ton of games. If Mendoza is going to be well-regarded in the future, he has to help get the Raiders over the hump. He won at a high rate in college, but the NFL is a different beast.