When people discuss which quarterbacks have reached the elite level, there are a few that come to mind instantly. One player who is normally skipped over but should be mentioned more among the elite quarterbacks in the league is Derek Carr of the Las Vegas Raiders.
Carr has been one constant bright spot for the Raiders throughout his tenure with the team. He was selected in the second round of the 2014 NFL Draft and some of the things that he has been able to accomplish despite the circumstances around him are very impressive.
Last season, despite Darren Waller being injured and Henry Ruggs III being released following his fatal drunk driving crash, Carr shattered his previous career-high for yards in a season. In 2021 he threw for 4,804 yards, leading the Raiders to 10 wins and a spot in the postseason.
It was the fourth consecutive season that Carr set a career-high for passing yards and his performance has put him in some great company. Carr is actually in third place in the NFL’s all-time passing yards leader through the first eight seasons of their career.
Carr’s 31,700 puts him behind only Peyton Manning, who had 33,189 yards with the Indianapolis Colts and Matt Ryan, who had 32,757 yards with the Atlanta Falcons. Dan Marino is in fourth with 31,416.
What makes that number so impressive for Carr is that he has accomplished it without having a star at the wide receiver position. Amari Cooper was the leading receiver on the team twice, but he isn’t on the level of who Manning and Ryan had. Reggie Wayne and Marvin Harrison catching passes in Indianapolis, while Julio Jones did it for Atlanta.
In his rookie season, the leading receiver on the Raiders was Andre Holmes. Last season it was Hunter Renfrow and the four seasons before that it was tight ends, Waller and Jared Cook. This year Carr will finally have an elite option at wide receiver to throw the ball to as the team acquired Davante Adams from the Green Bay Packers in the offseason.
While that list will assuredly change with the league becoming more aerial and young stars such as Patrick Mahomes, Justin Herbert, Joe Burrow and Josh Allen compiling eye-popping stats, Derek Carr is someone that deserves more credit for what he has accomplished thus far in his career.
