So remember that piece SM did a few days ago about how Derek Carr might be available to the Chicago Bears via trade and that it wouldn’t cost much? If not, here it is for some clarity. Suffice it to say, there was a growing belief that Las Vegas Raiders head coach Jon Gruden was not satisfied with Carr as his starter and wanted to move in a different direction. These were just rumblings at the time but rumblings that had persisted since early 2019.
Even then, there were many who felt it was ridiculous the Raiders would do this. Carr is a three-time Pro Bowl quarterback in his prime. He threw for 4,000 yards and had a 100.8 passer rating this season with a frankly average group of wide receivers. Unfortunately, the 7-9 finish to the season marked by a disappointing performance in Kansas City likely soured him on Gruden even further. Now things have gotten out in the open when Adam Schefter reported the Raiders were preparing a massive push to sign Tom Brady if the future Hall of Famer hits the open market.
Former scout and current columnist for The Athletic San Francisco John Middlekauf made it clear that this is a very real situation and that Carr is fully aware of it. By the sound of things, he’s tired of all the rumors and might be approaching his own desire to go somewhere else.
Derek Carr certainly gets blamed for a lot. Too much?
The entire situation with Carr is fascinating. Here’s a guy who has thrown for 4,000 yards in back-to-back seasons. He’s gone to three Pro Bowls and was an MVP hopeful in 2015. People talk about him not winning enough and yet the Raiders haven’t had a defense rank higher than 20th in points allowed during his entire career. Not to mention the lack of any true star players being put around him in that time. It truly feels like he’s been unfairly scapegoated for the team’s shortcomings.
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So where does this leave the Bears? Nothing is certain yet, but it does feel increasingly likely that Carr is gone from the Raiders this offseason. Will they trade him? One would think that’s the goal even though now that teams are aware Gruden wants him gone, it might be difficult with his expensive contract. That said, it’s much more affordable than anything Chicago would’ve had to pay for guys like Philip Rivers, Teddy Bridgewater or Cam Newton.
Carr would be a good fit in Matt Nagy’s offense. He features a big arm and isn’t afraid to throw it down the field. His experience with Gruden has also prepared him well for how to operate in a West Coast-style offense. This is a good quarterback with 18 career 4th quarter comebacks. He can play above average football, which is all this team needs to win football games.
Whether GM Ryan Pace would snap at that bait, thus abandoned Mitch Trubisky? That’s another story.
