There has been some speculation that new Oakland Raiders general manager Mike Mayock could work with head coach Jon Gruden to find a replacement for Derek Carr, but it does not sound like that is the plan — at least in the short term.
Mayock was asked about Oakland’s quarterback situation while speaking with reporters at the NFL Scouting Combine on Wednesday, and he had a strong endorsement of Carr.
Raiders GM Mike Mayock seems committed to Derek Carr at QB: “We’ve got a young quarterback who is a franchise quarterback. … We’re pretty happy at the quarterback position.”
— Ralph Vacchiano (@RVacchianoSNY) February 27, 2019
Carr struggled in his first season under Gruden. He threw for over 4,000 yards, but he had just 19 touchdown passes and 10 interceptions. He didn’t make the types of strides many expected him to with a supposed QB guru taking over the team, but the Raiders have invested a ton of money in the 27-year-old and probably would prefer for him to get another shot in 2019.
While Gruden has been known to say one thing and do another in the past, the way he spoke about Carr late in the 2018 season made it seem like he is not looking for a new starting quarterback. The Raiders have three first-round picks and could potentially use one of them on a QB to groom behind Carr, but it would be a surprise if the veteran is not back under center for the team in Week 1.
