Derek Carr needs to protect the football if the Raiders are to win out
The Las Vegas Raiders will need to win out to make the playoffs this season, and Derek Carr needs to do a better job protecting the football for them to do so.
The Las Vegas Raiders control their own destiny. With only two games left in the season, Las Vegas has a chance to earn a guaranteed playoff spot if they can win out. They were able to get to this point thanks to their defense’s progression in the second half of the season.
But to win this game, they can’t rely on defense alone. Las Vegas is going to need Derek Carr to play at his best level, similar to how he played in the first half of this season.
Raiders need Carr to protect the football
The key to Carr playing at a higher level is going to be his ability to protect the football and limit turnover. Since the bye, Carr has thrown seven interceptions and has fumbled the ball six times. Some of those turnovers have been major momentum killers that shut down an efficient drive that would’ve put Las Vegas in the lead or kept a league that they already had.
Carr isn’t the sole reason for some of Las Vegas’ losses, but his turnovers certainly didn’t help in those games.
Against teams like the Indianapolis Colts and the Los Angeles Chargers, Carr can’t make those same types of mistakes. Both of those teams have high-powered offenses and turning the ball over could result in a lead shift that is too difficult to come back from.
To limit those turnovers, three things are going to have to happen. The first is that the offensive line has to protect Carr as much as possible. If they let Carr get hit too much, then chances are he’ll drop the ball, especially since he is suffering from a lingering rib injury. Also, Carr will need to have better pocket awareness and protect the football when he is being taken down.
Lastly, Carr can’t force throws in clutch time. That’s what happen in Cleveland when Carr forced the ball downfield that resulted in an interception. As long he scans the field and takes what the defense gives him, then he’ll make a lot fewer turnovers.
As stated before, Carr is going to have to play at his very best if he hopes to take this team to the playoffs. He’ll have to do it without Darren Waller, who is missing his fifth straight game. Even without Waller, Carr should be able to spread the ball well, as he has against the Dallas Cowboys, Cleveland Browns, and Denver Broncos. And if he can do that, and limit or commit no turnovers, then he should be able to lead Las Vegas to back-to-back wins.