Derek Carr Robbed of Chance to Unseat Matt Schaub

August 15, 2014; Oakland, CA, USA; Oakland Raiders quarterback Derek Carr (4) leaves the field after an injury during the fourth quarter against the Detroit Lions at O.co Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Many of the fears surrounding Matt Schaub seem more validated with each snap he takes.  Unfortunately, Derek Carr won’t come to the rescue just yet.

Rookie’s concussion forces Oakland Raiders to keep Schaub

Everyone knew the Detroit Lions were going to be a tough matchup, even in preseason.  Their defensive front is one of the best in football.  While they only had one sack on the evening, they put a lot of pressure on the quarterbacks, especially early in the game.  Matt Schaub proved unable to handle it through the first three series of the game.  Beyond that though, he looked disturbingly like the player who fell apart for Houston in 2013.  His arm strength looked noticeably inept, which forced him to settle for check downs too often rather than attacking the Lions secondary.  Then when he tried to show he could by forcing it into tight coverage, it resulted in the only Oakland Raiders interception of the night.  It seemed like the perfect opportunity for rookie Derek Carr to jump in and steal the starting job.  Sadly that idea ran into some serious misfortune when Carr exited the game with a concussion after a defender fell on him.

Brice Butler and Greg Little illustrate Carr advantage

Up until that point the Fresno State product was showing the world why he has so much more upside than Schaub.  He wasn’t perfect.  Efficiency was a problem at times as was accuracy, which is nothing new with rookies but Carr still showed a number of advantages that warranted serious consideration for starting him right away.  The most noticeable of course was his arm strength.  Carr had one of the strongest throws coming out of college and it showed on his best drive of the game in the 3rd quarter.  In a sequence of four plays he connected on a short 4-yard dump to his running back to reach the 50-yard line.  Then the arm came into play as Carr found receivers Brice Butler and Greg Little for 29 and 38 yards respectively.  A play later he punched it in the end zone from three yards out.  One could feel the momentum in the quarterback race swinging his direction.  Then the concussion brought it to a halt.

Derek Carr is going to replace Matt Schaub at some point in 2014.  Oakland Raiders fans may just have to wait longer than hoped.