The first two weeks of the NFL season are officially in the books for the Las Vegas Raiders, with quarterback Derek Carr already making a case to be in the NFL MVP conversation.
As if the thrilling overtime win against the Baltimore Ravens wasn’t impressive enough for the Silver and Black, the storied franchise followed up with an equally impressive outing against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Ben Roethlisberger’s squad surprised many people with a win in Week 1 against the Buffalo Bills but struggled against an improved Raiders defense and Las Vegas’ three-time Pro Bowler under center.
Carr carved up the Steelers’ defense throughout the contest as he led the Raiders to a 26-17 win over Pittsburgh by throwing for 382 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. The most impressive play of the day came when Carr hit second-year wideout Henry Ruggs in the fourth quarter with an incredible 61-yard strike for a touchdown, which sealed the deal for Las Vegas outside of a field goal from Daniel Carlson with 20 seconds left in the game.
Although everything seems to be clicking for the Raiders other than their running game (52 rushing yards on Sunday), Carr’s play has been the main reason for optimism in Las Vegas. He’s playing with a revamped offensive line and continues to put up numbers while keeping his team competitive.
After two weeks, Carr is leading the NFL in passing yards with 817. He’s far ahead of big-name quarterbacks like Patrick Mahomes (680) and Tom Brady (655) while leading his team to two consecutive wins against two teams that made the playoffs last season.
There’s a lot of football left to be played, but Carr is already making a case to be included in this season’s NFL MVP race.
