Derek Carr knows a thing or two about hitting the turf. During his tenure with the Oakland Raiders, he has been sacked 150 times, the 13th-most in the NFL since 2014.
Things seem to be changing this season though as Carr has been sacked the seventh-fewest times through the first five weeks. It was particularly impressive during the Raiders win over the Chicago Bears, with Carr only being hit once by perhaps the best defense in the league.
In addition to that great feat, rookie running back Josh Jacobs also rushed for over 100 yards for the first time in his young career. Much of this success can be attributed to a revamped offensive line, especially right tackle Trent Brown.
Carr recently joked that his favorite Brown addition this year belongs to Trent, poking fun at Antonio Brown while also praising his new right tackle, via Alex Didion of NBC Sports:
“My favorite Brown was obviously Trent, for obvious reasons,” Carr said. “It’s my wife’s favorite signing also, for me to go out there and play against this defense and only be touched one time, that doesn’t happen.”
The Bears have been one of the NFL’s top defenses for the last few seasons, particularly at getting to the quarterback. They are currently tied for the fourth-most sacks this season with 17 with former Raiders linebacker Khalil Mack leading the way.
Oakland is finally finding its footing as an offensive team as well though as they have rushed for 672 yards, the ninth-most in the league.
Interestingly enough, Brown was paid more than any offensive lineman in NFL history after he signed a four-year, $66-million contract in the offense. Many thought that with that type of money, he would be playing at the left tackle, his spot on the New England Patriots line just one year ago.
However, head coach Jon Gruden went with his gut and moved Brown to the right side and kept sophomore tackle Kolton Miller on the blindside. So far it seems that arrangement has worked well for the Raiders.
While trading for Antonio Brown did not work out well for the Raiders, it is good to see that Trent is earning the money that Oakland gave him.
