Only eight months ago, the Las Vegas Raiders signed Derek Carr to a three-year, $121.5 million contract extension. Carr signaled his commitment to the organization at the time by saying if he wasn’t suiting up for the black and silver, he’d be ” playing golf.”
With their playoff chances nearly gone and a brutal final pair of regular-season contests against the San Francisco 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs remaining, the Raiders ended their commitment to Carr, at least for this winter.
When discussing the decision to bench Carr and his future with the organization on Wednesday, Las Vegas head coach Josh McDaniels said, “There’s a lot to be sorted through once the season is over.”
As noted by various insiders such as Field Yates of ESPN and Vic Tafur of The Athletic, there are financial ramifications for the Raiders depending on what they decide to do with the three-time Pro Bowl quarterback.
With Carr on the bench Sunday, it will end his streak of 91 consecutive games started for the franchise, which is the NFL’s longest active run for one team. The 31-year-old hasn’t missed a start since 2017.
The Raiders were expected to compete with the Denver Broncos and Los Angeles Chargers to end the Kansas City Chiefs’ six-year run as AFC West champions this year. Instead, the Broncos have had a very ugly 4-11 campaign that resulted in the firing of first-year head coach Nathaniel Hackett, and the Raiders appear to have given up with the benching of Carr.
The Chargers (9-6) are heading to the postseason, but for the seventh season in a row, the Chiefs (12-3) are division champions. Las Vegas has a lot of work to do next year, and the team’s starting quarterback since 2014 may not be around to help in 2023.
