In 2014, Raiders rookie quarterback Derek Carr had a solid season.
Thrown into a starting role on a struggling franchise, Carr showed leadership skills, grace under pressure and a quick release and strong arm. He avoided sacks and interceptions better than most rookies and threw for 3,270 yards and 21 touchdowns.
Yet some analysts were leery of his performance, pointing to analytics that showed he wasn’t that much of a difference-maker. Others pointed out that Carr rarely challenged defenses deep and was content to settle for short completions. His 5.5 yards per pass attempt in 2014 was significantly worse than other rookie starting QBs, such as Teddy Bridgewater (7.3) and Blake Bortles (6.1).
Now, six games into the 2015 season, Carr is showing the doubts were unfounded.
Under a new coaching staff, better offensive line and with some legitimate – make that outstanding – receivers in rookie Amari Cooper and Michael Crabtree, Carr has led Oakland to a 3-3 record.
In guiding the Raiders to a victory over the Chargers in San Diego Sunday, Carr was terrific.
Carr was 24-of-31 for 289 yards and three touchdowns, with no interceptions. He had a quarterback rating of 137.7 and now has a 101.0 rating for the season, a big leap from his 76.6 of 2014. He has 11 TD passes vs. just three interceptions, has completed 65.8 percent of his throws and is averaging 7.57 yards per pass attempt. That yards-per-attempt stat puts him at No. 11 in the NFL, just behind Philip Rivers and ahead of passers such as Matt Ryan, Ryan Tannehill, Bridgewater, Drew Brees and Matthew Stafford.
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On Sunday, he was the NFL’s second-best quarterback in terms of ESPN’s quarterback-rating formula (QBR) with a career high of 91.2.
After Sunday’s victory in San Diego, Raiders head coach Jack Del Rio called Carr’s play “sharp.” And the victory was a complete one for Oakland, with success on offense, defense and special teams. But the focus always is on a team’s quarterback, and Carr has taken huge steps this season to get to a new level.
For him, this season is turning into a wonderful ride – one Raiders fans are happy to see after so many bad seasons.
Said Carr of the Raiders locker room after Sunday's win, to Bay Area News Group columnist Tim Kawakami: “It was joyful. It was definitely joyful.”
