Oakland Raiders: Not everyone is a fan of Derek Carr’s deal
The Oakland Raiders made Derek Carr the highest-paid player in the NFL with a new contract, but not everyone’s a fan of the move.
The Oakland Raiders rewarded their franchise quarterback, Derek Carr, with a contract making him the highest-paid player in NFL history — a move which has brought out the contract haters in Raider Nation. The arguments range from sound rationale to lunacy.
Has he earned this deal? Why didn’t he take a hometown discount? Is there any money left over for other players? But the one that takes the cake: the Raiders shouldn’t have to pay that much.
Per Spotrac, Carr’s five-year, $125 million contract may have an allotted $40 million in guarantees and another $30.2 million guaranteed for injury, but it is still a great deal for everyone. From the quarterback’s press conference following the deal, he had this to say about getting the contract done before training camp, via Raiders.com:
"“Both sides just wanted to get it done. We figured out a way to do it so we have the opportunity to sign the other guys that I think are important to this football team. That was really important to me not to just take every single dime that we could.”"
Carr’s deal is balanced perfectly to help the Raiders compete and continue to be able to sign their guys, while also maximizing his earning potential in income tax-free Las Vegas. At the halfway point of this deal, it breaks down rather simply. 2019 is the year of decision.
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In terms of cap structure, it will be the first year the Raiders pay him $20 million in base salary, and it’s also the very same year his dead money drops from a staggering $25 million to, if need be, a cap-cuttable $7.5 million. What’s more, there’s a descending cap hit every year moving forward, $5 million in 2020, $2.5 million in 2021, and ultimately nothing in 2022.
The Elephant in the room
The most compelling argument which has been cast against the deal is this: Has Carr earned it? They are awarding a quarterback this market setting deal without him having won a Super Bowl, or even having a single playoff win. While his greatness is widely realized and respected around the league, there are very important milestones missing from his resume, a point of distinction for which there is no contention.
Carr is the heartbeat of this team, not just it’s quarterback and it’s leader. When he went down on Christmas Eve and called for the trainer, yelling to the sideline “it’s broken,” it was as if time stood still. The sounds of birds shrieking pierced the silence as a packed house of Raider fans watched their season be loaded into a cart and driven off the field.
Next man up is the belief in every player on the football team. Noble at its core and meant to rally the troops, but the fact is the “next men up” weren’t very Carr-like.
Until the Raiders complete a long and arduous trek thru the regular season and into the playoffs, ultimately to a Super Bowl win with Carr at the helm, it will remain true. However, as long as Carr is under center, the Raiders have their best option at winning on the field.
Trash the Past, Pay the Future
When it comes to drafting a quarterback, the Raiders have been unsuccessfully trying to find a franchise quarterback for at least 15 years. A passing league is what the NFL has become, driven by quarterbacks and pass rushers. The Raiders couldn’t produce one winning season in between 2002-15, nor did they possess a quarterback capable of playing elite level football.
In his first three years, Carr’s stats blow away nearly every Raider quarterback to lace them up, his 2016 numbers were comparable to Rich Gannon’s MVP season in 2001-02.
NFL.com has the Raiders on record having drafted five quarterbacks out of the NFL Draft since 2000. Marques Tuiasosopo second round in 2001, Andrew Walter in the third round of 2005, JaMarcus Russell as the first-overall pick in 2007, Tyler Wilson in the fourth round of 2014 and finally Carr in Round 2 of the 2015 draft.
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There isn’t a name on this list more infamous than that of Russell. And it’s for all the wrong reasons. Russell was the reason for the rookie salary wage scale. Having taken the Raiders to the cleaners after holding out during training camp and into the first week of the season.
This turned out to be disastrous. Russell could never stay in shape, he didn’t love football and he certainly didn’t love the Raiders. The Raiders paid him all that money and, mercifully for Raider and football fans, cut him in 2009. However, the Raiders still owed him more in dead money for 2010 season which he went to court for and won. It was one of, if not the absolute, worst deals ever.
But with Carr, he loves this team and he wants to be here. Again from his presser:
"“I wanted to be a Raider. I told my agent (Tim Younger) I don’t want to play anywhere else if they’ll let me sign a 20-year contract let’s do it. . . He (Younger) really tried to push me for some things, and I just said you know what man I’m good, that’s plenty.”"
Staying home with Family
With the type of money the Raiders are giving Carr, the nay-sayers were inevitable, saying he doesn’t deserve it. However, Carr humbly feels the same way, continually only caring about his success (from his presser again):
"“All of my teammates to a man said, man you work your tail off you deserve it. I don’t feel like I deserve it, but what they have to say matters to me. . .You can give me a dollar you can give me $25/M it doesn’t matter to me. My number one goal is to make sure I give everything that I have to this organization”"
He continued about the amount of money:
"“I never chased the money in this whole process. It’s something that i’m very passionate about. I tried to be the best version of myself everyday, and give my teammates and this organization everything that I had. It was never, it’s never going to be about the money for me and so if one kid can understand what I’m trying to tell them by saying that then I think i’ve done my job.”"
Union workers operate under a wage scale. In contract negotiations, the aim of all contract negotiators is to reset the market in order to maximize salary for the benefit of all employees. Carr, a member of the NFLPA, will be no different. In the near future, a quarterback is going to eclipse the $30 million per year mark.
Luckily the Raiders got their man at what will only be the premier deal until the next free agent quarterback signs.
Many fans clamored for Carr to sign a team-friendly deal with a healthy hometown discount with cap space for his teammates in mind. While expecting a player to take a hometown discount is something you expect out of accomplished or tenured veterans looking to finish out a career at home, not your budding superstar of a quarterback getting ready to cash in for his life-changing money.
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Carr was scheduled to make less than $1 million in 2017 before the extension, this for a player who registered six MVP votes and was named Castrol GTX Clutch Performer of the Year. To suggest this young man take less than what he’s worth when none of the contracts are fully guaranteed in this league is simply ludicrous.