Derek Carr's Record in Cold Games Is Atrocious, Bettors Beware

The Las Vegas Raiders will travel to the Cincinnati Bengals in the wild card round, in a game featuring two teams that haven’t had postseason success in quite a while. One key storyline to watch — the Raiders quarterback, Derek Carr, who has spent his career in Oakland and Las Vegas, isn’t exactly what we’d refer to as a “cold-weather quarterback.”

Derek Carr’s Track Record in the Cold Is Not Good

While it’s currently a balmy 50 degrees in Cincinnati, that won’t be the case heading into the weekend. The Bengals and Raiders play at 4:30 p.m. EST on Saturday, with the daytime high currently set for 30 degrees. That could be a problem for the Raiders.

Carr is 0-5 in games where the temperature is under 37 degrees. In those five games, he has never scored more than 17 points, and has only one game with a passer rating over 78.

In those games, he has failed to top 222 passing yards in four out of five contests, has never thrown more than one touchdown in any game, and has thrown a total of five interceptions. This might be ugly.

Cincinnati Isn’t Mad About the Weather

Bengals head coach Zac Taylor, when asked about the weather forecast, smiled and said “it’s not a disadvantage.” It feels like the Bengals organization is embracing it and prepared, and think that the weather will only aid their home field advantage in this game.

The Bengals are used to playing in cold weather. Being in Ohio and being a part of the AFC North, they play outdoor games in their entire division in Cincinnati, Cleveland, Pittsburgh and Baltimore. The cold is nothing new for them.

Meanwhile, Carr hasn’t played in cold weather since 2019. It might catch him and the rest of the team a bit off guard.

There are many reasons, from the talent of the teams to Carr’s record in cold weather, that have me heavily favoring the Bengals in this game. Currently the spread is CIN -5.5 at WynnBET Sportsbook, and I would caution anyone on betting anything having to do with Carr being successful this weekend.