Raiders Trade or Shade: Will Derek Carr pick a team or force free agency

The Las Vegas Raiders will be hoping to get some trade compensation for Derek Carr, but he could just wait and get released, leaving them getting nothing in return.

3…2…1…GO! Tis the season for Derek Carr news and speculation and until we find within 5 1/2 weeks what the final outcome will be, speculation is all we can provide. The fact that he has a no-trade clause in his contract and can ultimately choose where he wants to go in relation to viable suitors is what throws the biggest wild card question mark for the Raiders in this whole ordeal.

Nothing has captivated Raider Nation and the debate about Derek Carr more than the Raiders’ final decision to bench him with two games remaining in the season. With his newly signed extension, Carr was essentially on a one-year prove-it deal that ultimately resulted in him not doing enough to Josh McDaniels and company to warrant them sticking with him for the remainder of his deal.

That deal jumped exponentially to 43 million a year and as of February 15th, his 33 million base salary and 7.5 million of his 2024 salary were fully guaranteed.

The other caveat to the whole situation is that if he was to get injured, that same amount of money would immediately be guaranteed as well, hence the benching. Dave Ziegler and Josh McDaniels essentially decided to protect their investment and not risk him getting hurt, ultimately deciding for them whether they wanted to pay him or not.

So now the front office is in a peculiar situation when it comes to Derek Carr’s future.  They have the ability to test the market and see what they can get in return for him via trade, but because of that clause, he has to agree to the deal. That gives him all the power in the world to pick his own team or force them to cut him before the February 15th deadline so that he can test free agency on his own.

This leads us to the 43 million dollar question: Will Derek Carr accept a trade suitor of his choice out of what should be a very heated market for him, or will he stand his ground and force the Raiders to cut him so he can see what striking his own deal has to offer?

Let’s dive in.