The ballad of Derek Carr is well-documented within Raider Nation. The former second-round pick was the franchise's signal-caller for nearly a decade and broke numerous records, but his inability to lead the Silver and Black to any postseason success was a black mark on his resume.
He also drove a wedge into the fan base, as some felt that the defense or poor coaching were to blame for the team's failures, while others felt that Carr alone should have faced the music for his poor performances.
Carr is now entering his third offseason away from Las Vegas, but somehow, the Raiders remain at the forefront of his mind. Recently, he spoke to a local Nevada reporter about the team, and he finally said something that all of Raider Nation can get behind.
Derek Carr sends Geno Smith nice message before first Raiders season
Last Saturday, Carr talked to Shannon Kelly about the new-look team in Las Vegas, specifically Pete Carroll, Geno Smith and Ashton Jeanty. What he said about Smith, in particular, should excite the fan base and unite them in their thinking ahead of the 2025 season.
"Geno can go out there and do what he does, and be accurate. He's a crazy accurate passer, I've always been a great, big fan of his. Always had a good relationship with him, so I'm rooting for Geno," Carr said. "I hope he breaks all my records. I hope he has the greatest career and time with the Raiders. That's what you want, you want to leave a legacy, and then you hope that someone else can come in and try and break it, try and top it, and that's what I'm rooting for, for him."
"I love Pete Carroll... On offense you know they're gonna run the football, obviously with their draft pick, even though he's a Boise State Bronco, I'll look past that he's a Raider now so we're family"
— Shannon Kelly (@shannonkelly_tv) July 12, 2025
Derek Carr on the new era of Raiders football #RaiderNation pic.twitter.com/W8CSD8CEdf
If Smith can come in and break Carr's records, that would be an incredible feat for a player whose shelf life in Las Vegas is not likely to be more than three years. However, what would matter more to Raider Nation is if Smith can snap the team's postseason victory drought.
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It has been 22 years since the team last won a playoff game, and in nine years at the helm, Carr only led the team to the postseason twice. While 2016 is arguably the biggest "what if" in Raiders history, he and the team were bounced in the first round of the 2021 playoffs as well.
Smith is coming off a career-best 4,320 passing yards last season, which should tell Raiders fans that he still has plenty left in the tank. He may have struggled with red zone turnovers last year, but a reunion with Pete Carroll and having Chip Kelly by his side should help mitigate that issue.
Raider Nation is starved for a high-end quarterback that can lead the team to the promised land, and if Smith can be that, then there is no doubting which of these two signal-callers will be looked upon more favorably in the team's history. It sounds like Carr won't care if things play out this way either.