It won’t be an easy read; let’s just get that out of the way. This is especially true if you were a big fan of the now-benched signal caller. With that being said, let’s recap some of the lowest moments in Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Derek Carr’s career.
The “Autumn Wind” has been a joke to many for years now. The once-great hope for the franchise appears to have played his last game for the Raiders. With it, a new era appears to have been ushered in. Carr helped the Raiders come back to relevancy in his tenure but couldn’t get over the hump; in the end, results are what matter. Here are the five worst moments of Carr’s career.
Week 14, 2016: Derek Carr struggles against K.C.
Oakland roiled into this game on a six-game winning streak and rode high into a Thursday night game. They met up against the Kansas City Chiefs in a battle for first place. Carr and the team sputtered. Carr was an abysmal 17 of 41 for 117 yards with no touchdowns and a rating of 49.1. There were two drives that began inside the 20 in the second half. They only managed three points in those drives and were unable to close the gap. It was the biggest game of his career and a playoff appearance that could’ve been locked in, and Carr did not perform. They did make the playoffs the next week, but when the lights were on, Carr didn’t show up.
Week 12, 2019: The Jets debacle
It was the last season in Oakland, and the Raiders had won three in a row to pull into playoff position. They met the 3-7 New York Jets in what appeared to be set for an easy win, and well, it was a cluster of hell. Carr went 15-27 for 127 and had an interception that was returned for a touchdown. Carr couldn’t continue his play, and in a game that may have given an extra push to lock in a playoff spot, it was not meant to be. This was not the first nor the last big game in which Carr failed to make a mark, and instead he was given much criticism for his play.
Week 12, 2020: Struggling against the Falcons
The inaugural season in Vegas started with so much promise. The Raiders had shot out to a 6-3 record and went into the Falcons game following a back-and-forth battle with the defending Super Bowl champion Chiefs. In a similar fashion to the year before, the Raiders met a 3-7 team with all signs pointing towards a win. Yeah, well, you know the rest. Carr proceeded to go 22 of 34 and had another interception returned for a touchdown. His QBR was a meager 9.3, and yet again, with so much on the line, he came up short. The loss and poor performance dropped Vegas to 6-5, and they would eventually end up missing the playoffs.
Week 14, 2022: Derek Carr came up short against the Rams this year
The Raiders came in riding a three-game winning streak, with two teams at the time battling for playoff positions. They faced a Rams team that was the defending Super Bowl champion but was a shell of its former self, with many players out and Baker Mayfield playing only two days after joining the team.
Everything pointed to Vegas picking up another win and breezing by, right? Well, you know the deal. Derek went 11 of 20 with two interceptions and no touchdowns. His rating of 36.9 was just horrendous, and his pre-halftime pick turned the game around. With a 13-3 lead, Carr floated a pass in the end zone that was picked off and prevented points from happening. A lead that at worst goes to 16-3 ends with nothing, and Vegas falls by one as Carr couldn’t muster anything outside of a great opening drive.
Week 16, 2022: The final nail in the coffin
In the aftermath of one of the strangest endings in a game the week before, Vegas found itself in a position to improve its standing for a playoff spot against the Steelers in a Christmas Eve battle. The opening stanza was impressive. Carr led the team on a 14-play, 72-yard drive that resulted in a 14-yard touchdown pass. That was the lone highlight of the game. The former starter went 16-for-30 for 174 yards, three interceptions, and his lone touchdown. His rating was 42.2, and I don’t know if you sense a theme, but no, it’s not good. The three picks were at the worst times.
After holding a 10-3 lead, Carr bounced a pass off Foster Moreau for an interception. Following a missed field goal, Carr threw a pick behind Hunter Renfrow. Then last but not least, with the team now down 13-10, Carr overthrows an open Renfrow and, more than likely, ends his tenure with a pass that ends any hopes of a postseason run.
What could’ve been for Carr and the Raiders
Week 16 of 2016 was on Christmas Eve, and the Raiders looked to be in a position to possibly grab the home-field advantage, but a broken leg ended that hope. The Raiders wouldn’t return to the postseason until 2021.
What began for Carr with so much promise ended in disappointment. He gave his heart to the team for nine years, but the results weren’t there when they were needed. At the end of the day, “Once a Raider, always a Raider.”
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*Top Photo: AP Photo/Matt Dunham