Raiders news: Mike Mayock puts to rest questions about Derek Carr’s future

Mike Mayock spoke in support of quarterback Derek Carr as rumors swirl about his future with the Las Vegas Raiders.

Derek Carr’s future with the Las Vegas Raiders has been in question all offseason. The team has been linked to potential upgrades such as Deshaun Watson and Russell Wilson, bringing up the idea that the front office may be ready to move on from Carr.

Raiders GM Mike Mayock decided to come out and make it clear how the organization truly views Carr. ESPN’s Paul Gutierrez shared the telling quote from Mayock.

Mike Mayock puts an end to any trade rumors about Derek Carr

This is quite the strong endorsement of the former 2014 draft pick who has spent his entire career with the Raiders.

Carr has played in 110 career games from 2014-2020 and just threw for over 4,000 yards along with 27 touchdowns and only nine interceptions last season. He and the whole team have shown gradual improvement under Jon Gruden.

The Raiders are in an interesting spot with Carr because his dead cap value is only $2.5 million in 2021. That drops to nill in 2022, which is the final year of his current deal. That makes him easy to move in the case of landing someone like Watson or Wilson.

But getting either of those big names may be a longshot in 2021 and the Raiders can continue to back Carr as their guy until he proves he doesn’t deserve the support. And ultimately, the Raiders likely wouldn’t turn down a blockbuster trade if one became a true possibility. Mayock isn’t just going to come out and say Carr is the guy for now until something better comes along.

The team has plenty of flexibility with Carr for the next two years. They can cut him next offseason for nothing and right now he provides a suitable option until something better can indeed come along. Mayock threw his support behind him, but an endorsement from Gruden would speak much more to the team’s plans this season and beyond.