Although the Las Vegas Raiders and quarterback Derek Carr parted ways this offseason, the franchise legend still has strong feelings for the organization. The 32-year-old is now the QB1 in New Orleans, but it will seemingly take some time for his family to get used to the switch.
Derek Carr Says His Family Still Roots For The Raiders
Carr was asked on Thursday if he still watches the Raiders and whether or not he roots for them. Expectedly, the passionate signal-caller responded with only positivity toward his former teammates.
“When we [the Saints] played the Chiefs this past Sunday, I got home, and my kids had the Raiders game on. I’m watching my guys, and they’re like cheering for Daniel [Carlson] when he’s going up to kick.”
“My daughter the other day was running on the Saints field, and she said, ‘Touchdown Raiders’! I was like, wait, wait, wait, not anymore. Not anymore,” the tenth-year veteran continued. To be fair, it is hard to blame her. The Silver and Black uniform is all she has ever known.
“Those are my friends. You know, I have no hard feelings. Like I said, I got no hard feelings toward any of my guys. I want those guys to succeed, because I know when you don’t succeed it’s tough. And it’s hard. It’s hard on your family. It’s hard on everybody. And I don’t want that for my friends,” Carr said with a gleam in his eyes.
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Carr arrived with the Raiders via the 2014 NFL Draft. He started immediately as a rookie and was the one true constant during the franchise’s move from Oakland to Vegas. The fan base rallied around him, and for better or worse, they backed him relentlessly. He was a player who was easy to rally around with his late-game heroics and fiery personality.
Thus, the split—and more so the way it happened—left a sour taste in the mouth of Raider Nation. Carr himself was even vocal about the disrespect he felt from the current regime. General manager Dave Ziegler and head coach Josh McDaniels are still trying to prove it was the correct decision. But either way, the page has turned on this saga.
Now that the dust has settled and both sides have moved on, it’s clear that Carr meant it when he said, “Once a Raider, always a Raider”. No matter how you feel about Carr personally, his loyalty has never been a question mark. He is a natural-born leader who cares about his teammates on and off the field. And he proved it with his comments on Thursday.
‘Don’t Cry Because It Is Over; Smile Because It Happened
What is that old saying? “Don’t cry because it is over. Smile because it happened.” That is all Raiders fans can do at this stage. Derek Carr may be gone, but the memory of him as the starting quarterback will live on forever. Carr’s name is a frequent occurrence within the Raiders’ history books.
*Top Photo: Sean Gardner/Getty Images