Derek Carr, the quarterback for the Las Vegas Raiders, broke his quiet on social media on Thursday, two weeks and a day after being benched by the organization. Since his second-round selection by the Raiders in the 2014 NFL draught, Carr had been the team’s starting quarterback.
“This truly saddens me. I was unable to say my goodbyes in person “Carr wrote this despite agreeing to remain away from the squad for their last two games so as not to be a distraction. “Our nine years together have been nothing short of an emotional roller coaster.
I want to express my deepest thanks for all the help you’ve given me and my loved ones over the years. It was like you were right there beside me through every painful setback and every euphoric game-winning drive.
“Leaving is especially difficult because I know I gave you my all during the entire season and offseason. It wasn’t flawless, but hopefully, you’ll walk away as proud Raiders fans with some good stories to tell.”
After extending his deal with the Raiders for three years and $121.5 million this past spring, Carr indicated he plans to retire in 2021 “If I had to play football for someone else, I would definitely resign. For as long as I can remember, I have been a Raider.
For the rest of my life, I will only ever support one team: the Oakland Raiders. The conviction is so deep within me that I know that even the most dire circumstances can be rectified. If the ship goes down, I’d rather go down with it. Carr admitted he was sad to leave the Raiders, but he was excited to join a new NFL team.
“Raider Nation truly is special. … I look forward to a new city and a new team who, no matter the circumstance, will get everything I have.”
Derek Carr says goodbye to the Raiders 👀 pic.twitter.com/SjEuh8AUaG
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) January 12, 2023
“I really did mean that,” he confessed, “but I never expected it to end like this. I still feel an intense need to achieve my goal of being a champion.” The Raiders have the option of releasing Carr for a $5.625 salary cap charge up to three days before the Super Bowl, and Carr’s most recent agreement also contained a no-trade clause for the quarterback.
The statement the Raiders released on Thursday may have reduced their bargaining power in any potential deal. With a $40 million signing bonus awaiting him if he remains with the Raiders or accepts a trade by February 15, Carr has nothing to lose by waiting for his release and testing the free agency market.
The official start date for trades is March 15th. If the Raiders are successful in finding a trading partner for Carr, they will need the quarterback’s consent to the move and the assurance that their prospective new team will not back out. Carr may have a strong market for his talents, but the Raiders may not get as much in return for him.
If a team were to trade for Derek Carr, here is what it would owe him on his current deal:
2023: $32.9M base salary + $100K workout bonus = $33M cap hit
2024: $41.9M base salary + $100K workout bonus = $42M cap hit
2025: $41.2M base salary + $100K workout bonus = $41.3M cap hit— Field Yates (@FieldYates) January 12, 2023
First-year head coach Josh McDaniels mentioned a meeting with Carr earlier this week. McDaniels remarked, “Once again, we’ve had a fantastic partnership.” “Anything to the contrary is false; he has accomplished a tremendous deal. There will be some time to anticipate that, though.”
Carr, who will be 32 on March 28, sat out the Raiders’ final two games while Jarrett Stidham started in his place. The team lost both games, in OT, to the NFC’s No. 2 seed San Francisco 49ers and the AFC’s No. 1 seed Kansas City Chiefs.
Carr threw for 3,522 yards and 24 touchdowns with 14 interceptions in 15 games for the 6-11 Raiders. In addition, his completion percentage dropped to 60.8%, and his passer rating dropped to 86.3%, both of which were career lows. His career high in interceptions is 2.8%.
Carr has the most passing yards (35,222), touchdown passes (217), sacks (264), fourth-quarter comebacks (28), game-winning drives (33) and starts by a quarterback (142) in Raiders history. He also has the third-most interceptions (99) in team history.
He has played in one postseason game, a 26-19 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals in the wild-card stage last season after throwing an interception just short of the goal line. His career record is 63-79.
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