How the Oakland Raiders Can Put Carr in Pole Postion

Sep 7, 2014; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; Oakland Raiders quarterback Derek Carr (4) drops back to pass against the New York Jets during the first quarter of a game at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

Oakland Raiders quarterback Derek Carr learned that he “can do this” in a loss last week against the New York Jets. And with the throws he made on the Raiders’ last touchdown drive, he showed the coaching staff he “can do this.”  With a quarterback rating of 94.7 coming with two touchdowns and no interceptions with completion percentage of 62.5 percent, Carr wasn’t too bad.

But gaining 4.7 yards per attempt in the passing game isn’t going to win unless you have the ’85 Bears defense. The Raiders clearly have nothing close to that on defense so that approach on offense isn’t going to win for them. It’s understandable the coaching staff didn’t want Carr too exposed to all pressure the Jets put on opposing quarterbacks.

But at some point, you have to try to win the game and not worry about how your young quarterback is going to look. So the plan for the Houston Texans, who also have a good pass-rush, can’t be the same as it was for the Jets last Sunday. The best way for the coaching staff to put Carr in position to win is to allow him to use his entire skill-set anyway.

Turn the page to see how they can do it in Week 2.