The Las Vegas Raiders are entering a new era as a football team and one that doesn’t involve Derek Carr as the team’s starting quarterback. Carr spent nine seasons at the helm of the Raiders backfield, missing a grand total of four regular-season games during that span. He led the Raiders to the postseason twice in that span.
But after a disappointing 2022 season, both sides felt it was time to move on, and Carr signed as a free agent with the New Orleans Saints. In his final season with the Raiders, he played 15 games and passed for 3,522 yards. That was his lowest total since 2017.
He threw for 24 touchdowns and 14 interceptions, the highest interception rate of his career and one of the lowest TD-INT ratios of his career. However, he did make his fourth Pro Bowl and first since 2017.
Carr, when reflecting on his final season with the Raiders, was honest in his self-assessment, wishing he could have done more for Las Vegas, according to Brett Martel of Associated Press:
“They just didn’t get my best and that drove me crazy at the end of the year because I felt so spread out in so many different ways,” Carr said during minicamp this week. “I just didn’t feel like myself and I feel bad for the (Raiders) coaches and players.”
Saints head coach Dennis Allen agreed with Carr’s assessment and said the two had many conversations about it before bringing him on board.
“We talked about last year and how he probably didn’t have as good a season as he may have wanted or anticipated.”
“All I can say is that when I watch him now, there’s a clear focus on being the best version of himself for this football team,” Allen added.
Although Carr was not his absolute best self that the Raiders had become accustomed to in years past, he still remains one of the better veteran quarterbacks in football. He should do wonders for a Saints team that has been missing a steady presence at QB since the retirement of Drew Brees.
As for the Raiders, they’ll move forward with a veteran of their own in Jimmy Garoppolo, and see if he can be the one to help lift Las Vegas into the postseason.
Josh Jacobs working out away from Raiders
As NFL teams begin mandatory minicamp, one notable Raiders star is not present, and that is running back Josh Jacobs. Jacobs is yet to sign his franchise tender and is away from the team while staying in shape. It’s unclear how long he’ll be away and if he needs a long-term contract offer in order to return.
