Derek Carr Is Paying For The Sins Of His Brother
By Kevin Saito
There is likely – no, there absolutely is – a special place in Hell for people who quote Taylor Swift lyrics. But Oakland Raiders second year QB Derek Carr would probably do very well to keep this little ditty in mind, “And the haters gonna hate, hate, hate…”And then do what the song goes on to suggest, and just “shake it off.”
Hey, if it’s good enough for Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson to lip-synch to, it should be good enough for Carr to play on a continual loop in his head. And hopefully only in his head because nobody really wants to hear it out loud. But it’s actually good advice given the fact that the haters seem to be lining up to take a shot at the Fresno State product.
Trying to understand exactly where all of this hate is coming from though, is utterly mind boggling.
No, Carr didn’t lead the Raiders back to the Super Bowl. Nor did he lead them back to a .500 record. But anybody suggesting that Oakland’s step backward to 3-13 last season is all on Carr really needs to take a step back and get a little perspective – not to mention a few facts.
By most relevant metrics, Carr had a pretty solid rookie season. 3,270 yards, 21 touchdowns against just 12 interceptions, and a respectable 58.1 percent completion rate. Yes, Carr had his ups and downs throughout the season, it’s to be expected of a rookie quarterback. But given the circumstances he was thrust into, he performed exceptionally well, showing the poise and leadership one would want in their field general.
Carr showed some real flashes of talent, promise, and that he has the potential to be the franchise quarterback the Raiders have been desperate to find for years upon years now.
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Yet, mind bogglingly, for some people Carr’s performance last season proved nothing, and wasn’t anywhere near good enough for him to keep a starting job in the NFL. If you’re a knucklehead like ESPN’s John McTigue, Carr’s performance in 2014 is reason enough to jettison him straight to the scrap heap in order to draft the completely untested and unproven Marcus Mariota – a guy from a spread offense whose skills may or may not actually translate to the NFL.
Because apparently, in that bizarro parallel universe that McTigue and his supporters live in, that makes sense.
But McTigue is far from alone in his opinion that Carr isn’t anything close to resembling a franchise quarterback. In countless Raiders forums, social media outlets, and on articles right here at Golden Gate Sports, the haters come out in full force to bash Carr while praying for Winston or Mariota to somehow magically end up in Silver and Black.
Spoiler alert – that’s about as likely to happen as JaMarcus Russell actually coming back as a quarterbacks coach with the Raiders.
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One common theme woven throughout a lot of the Carr-hating comments is the fact that his last name is – well – Carr. It seems that there is a contingent of people out there who seem to hold the fact that his older brother is former Texans, Panthers, Giants, 49ers quarterback David Carr against him. And because the elder Carr had a less than successful career in the NFL, these people reason that it’s only logical – or rather, what passes for logic with these folks – that the younger Carr will have the same sort of career as well.
From the Battle Red Blog over on SB Nation, blogger David Corzo had a few choice things to say about Carr.
"“I refuse to believe that Derek Carr will amount to anything other than a huge bust — just out of sheer principle… Regardless, Carr’s development, despite the bloodline, should be bolstered with Cooper, thus helping the Raiders win some more games.”"
The key phrase there is “despite the bloodline.” Which, given that Battle Red Blog is a site devoted to the Houston Texans, it might be a little understandable that he’s not a fan of anybody named Carr. Of course, given the fact that Corzo goes on to insult Mark Davis and his hair style – which, though admittedly an odd style, just seems to indicate some bigger and deeper issues with the Raiders overall.
"“I also refuse to believe that this man and his ridiculous haircut will ever lead the Oakland Raiders back to glory. Yes, I’m vain like that. Yes, I’m comfortable with that.”"
Well, at least Corzo is comfortable with being vain. But he also seems to lack basic logic skills, and is seemingly unable to grasp the concept that David is not Derek and Derek is not David. Though their last names are the same, they’re not the same person.
December 21, 2014; Oakland, CA, USA; Oakland Raiders quarterback Derek Carr (4) during the first quarter against the Buffalo Bills at O.co Coliseum. The Raiders defeated the Bills 26-24. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
But just for kicks, let’s look at the stat line from the rookie season of each. The elder Carr’s debut season with the Texans was 2002, and like his younger brother did for Oakland last season, he started all 16 games for Houston. For his rookie year, David Carr threw for 2,592 yards, had a 52.5 completion percentage, 9 touchdowns against 15 interceptions. And oh yeah, he led his team to a 4-12 season.
The elder Carr put up inferior numbers but had a lot of advantages that his younger brother hasn’t yet had – such as a receiver like Andre Johnson, whom he played with for a few seasons. Not to mention the fact that the elder Carr, unlike his younger brother, had an effective running game to work with. Dominick Williams broke 1,000 yards twice in 2003 (1,031), 2004 (1,188), and very nearly broke it again in 2005 (976).
Despite the advantages the elder Carr had over his younger brother, he never posted a winning record with the Texans, and only put up numbers better than his younger brother’s rookie year, once. That year was 2004 when he passed for 3,531 yards, 16 touchdowns, 14 interceptions, and threw for a 61.2 completion percentage.
It makes absolutely no sense, but people actually seem to be holding David Carr’s lack of success in the NFL against his younger brother, and in looking at the stats on the both of them, are trying their hardest to find – or manufacture – some parallel between their careers. It’s really something to behold in watching some of these people performing some incredible feats of logical gymnastics in explaining exactly why the younger Carr is – or rather, will be – a bust. To many of them, it’s simply because his older brother was.
2014 was a pretty incredible year for the younger Carr. Without a historically bad running game, very little help in the way of a reliable receiving corps, a confused and incompetent coaching staff, and a defense that was beyond terrible for three quarters of the season, Carr still managed to, for the most part, thrive and flourish as an NFL signal caller.
But make no mistake about it – there was no quarterback in existence that could have won with the Raiders team as it was constructed in 2014. None. Even if somebody had created a cyborg infused with the DNA of Joe Montana, Steve Young, Kenny Stabler, Terry Bradshaw, Peyton Manning, Ben Rothliesberger, and Andrew Luck – and then put an Oakland jersey on it – it still wouldn’t have won with the Raiders’ roster in 2014.
Things are changing in Oakland. With some very solid foundational pieces to build around, an infusion of talented – and young – free agents, the Raiders are a team on the rise. GM Reggie McKenzie and HC Jack Del Rio are building a team that will be competitive and put Carr in a position to take that next important step. With a season under his belt, and a very experienced, competent coaching staff who will actually tailor a game plan around his skills, the sky really is the limit.
But it’s likely that no matter what Carr does, no matter if he wins a dozen Super Bowl rings, it seems like there will always be a contingent of people who will continue to hate on him for no other reason than his big brother wasn’t a very good quarterback.
And that’s just ridiculous beyond measure. But as that noted social philosopher Taylor Swift said, haters are always going to hate. All Carr can do is keep growing, keep improving, and of course, just shake it off.
Next: Crabtree Leaves Oakland Without a Deal