Per Mike Silver, Derek Carr is “frustrated” with contract talks

Per a report from Mike Silver of NFL Network, Oakland Raiders QB Derek Carr is “frustrated” by the slow pace of contract talks with the team.

Trouble in paradise? According to a report by Mike Silver of NFL Network, that could be the case with the Oakland Raiders and Derek Carr. Per Silver, Carr is “frustrated” with the slow pace of contract talks with the team.

From Silver:

"“Two sources said Carr, given his previously stated desire to be a “Raider for life,” has grown frustrated with the slow pace of discussions and is extremely eager to get the deal done before the start of training camp.”"

Silver goes on to elaborate in his report, but the main sticking point here is that there have not been significant contract discussions between the two sides.

In a follow up tweet, Silver said:

"“Carr wants a deal done before training camp… Raiders have not reached out for several weeks.”"

And in his report, Silver explained:

"“Despite a strong desire by Pro Bowl quarterback Derek Carr to hammer out a lucrative contract extension before the start of training camp, there has been no significant communication between his agent and the Oakland Raiders within the last several weeks, according to two sources familiar with the situation.”"

All of this comes as quite a bit of a surprise. Since before the draft, Raiders General Manager Reggie McKenzie has been candid about where things stand in regard to Carr’s upcoming contract extension. It was made clear that there was no rush to get the deal done, and that it would happen after the draft. Carr said as much himself in various interviews prior to the draft.

"“We’ll let the draft happen, Reggie said he wanted to do it after the draft,” Carr continued. “They’ve been talking a little bit to build it, but I’ll let them handle that.”"

In fact, Carr has specifically stated that the communications on both side has been great. And this was roughly one month ago.

"“The communication from both sides have been great,” said Carr. “They let me know exactly where they’re at and what they’re trying to do. We let them know exactly where we’re at and what we’re trying to do. It hasn’t been hard, it’s been easy. Reggie sat down and talked to me. It’s not like some divide or anything, we’re family. So, we’re just trying to figure all that out.”"

So only two or so weeks after the draft, now Carr is suddenly frustrated? That seems rather hard to believe. Here’s another older quote from Derek about his eventual contract extension:

"“The biggest thing for me is that I don’t want it to distract my teammates. They know me, that I really don’t care. I just like to play ball, but I don’t want people asking them questions. I would want it done so they don’t have to deal with it, but I’m always going to do what’s best for my family and what’s best for the team all in one.”"

And finally:

"“I’m a Raider. I’m a Raider for life. I don’t want to play anywhere else,” Carr told Sirius XM Mad Dog Radio’s Adam Schein. “When I got drafted, this is where I wanted to be anyway. And so, I don’t want to go anywhere, ever. They told me they don’t want me to go anywhere, ever."

So take this report with a grain of salt. Or take it with an entire pound of salt. This deal is going to get done, Carr is going to be among the highest paid players in the NFL, and the Raiders will have their franchise quarterback locked up for the prime of his career. It will be a win for both sides.

The biggest question here as always been what the financial terms will look like. The speculation has been that Carr’s extension will rival that of Andrew Luck’s, but it’ll be interesting to see what the guarantees and the detailed numbers look like, as McKenzie operates a bit differently than most GM’s when it comes to the salary cap.

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I’m sure we’ll find out before training camp.