At least once every season, there are trade rumors circulating around Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Derek Carr.
The 30-year-old Carr has been a solid performer for the Raiders in his seven seasons so it is somewhat mysterious why the trade rumors resurface.
Despite his win-loss record of 47-63, he is a good quarterback.
Carr often lives in the shadow of his big brother, retired NFL quarterback David Carr.
Here are three reasons why Raiders fans should want Carr to stay in Las Vegas and to end the trade talk once and for all.
3. His Mistakes Are Minimal
Carr does not throw a lot of interceptions.
He puts the ball in the air a lot; in fact, he has attempted 3,830 passes in his career.
Yet he has only thrown 71 interceptions, averaging about 10 a season.
Derek Carr has now thrown 292 passes without and interception. That's a new #Raiders franchise record and is also the NFL's longest active interception-less streak.
— Levi Damien (@LeviDamien) December 17, 2018
As a measure of comparison, Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre threw 116 interceptions from 1992-1998 with the Green Bay Packers.
Carr’s accuracy under pressure is not elaborated upon, but his statistics tell the tale of how good he is at protecting the ball.
2. He Throws A Lot Of Touchdown Passes
Not only is he accurate, he is able to get the ball in the end zone.
Carr has 170 career touchdown passes in his 110 career games.
Comparing him again to Favre, he comes up a little short here.
Favre had 213 touchdown passes in his first seven seasons as the Packers starting quarterback.
Favre also had Sterling Sharpe, Antonio Freeman, and Robert Brooks to throw to during this time.
They are among the greatest wide receivers in the history of the Packers.
Carr’s wide receiving corps have not been as talented or noteworthy.
Regardless, he has maximized his opportunities to throw touchdown passes.
GO DEEP!!
Nelson Agholor hauls in the 45-yard bomb from Derek Carr for the touchdown! 🤩pic.twitter.com/ykLMQ1NMDd
— Raider Nation (@RaidersNationCP) November 8, 2020
1. He Is Clutch
Oh, & if someone asks, “who’s thrown the most Game Winning TD passes in a season?”
Is it Brady, Peyton, Rodgers, Elway, Marino, Stabler, Favre, Brees, Mahomes?
Nope, it’s Derek Carr, he OWNS the record for the most “Game Winning TD passes” in a single season.#RaiderNation
— Stacanova (@stacanova) December 10, 2020
Carr has engineered a lot of come-from-behind and game-winning drives to help his team.
You could argue that his team (particularly his defense) puts him in these impossible positions where he needs to come from behind.
Yet he is always up to the task and not afraid of making big plays in critical moments of games.
He has 21 comebacks in his career and 24 game-winning drives.
His big one in 2020 was against the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium on October 11.
Carr threw three touchdowns in the victory.
"You can shut up about Derek Carr not being the guy. This proved that he is."
What does their win in Kansas City do for the @Raiders confidence?
📺: @gmfb pic.twitter.com/nzDx1WGTQQ
— NFL Network (@nflnetwork) October 13, 2020
Coach Gruden On Carr
Part of the trade rumblings have always centered around Coach Jon Gruden, who seemingly told unnamed sources that he was not happy with Carr.
Whether any or all of that is true is unknown.
For his part, Gruden has publicly supported Carr in the 2021 offseason.
“Derek is very underestimated. He doesn’t get much credit for how good he’s playing, but he completes a lot of passes. He changes plays at the line of scrimmage. He’s starting to make more and more plays with his legs now.”
Raiders GM Mike Mayock also supports Carr.
"I think Derek Carr had his best year yet, under Jon Gruden. I think he's one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL and we're happy with him…I think Jon Gruden and I would stand shoulder to shoulder and pound the table for Derek Carr." – #Raiders GM Mike Mayock, on Derek Carr.
— Paul Gutierrez (@PGutierrezESPN) March 3, 2021
Raiders fans should also support Carr for all of the reasons listed above.
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