Vegas Expects Derek Carr to Improve on Strong 2020 Campaign

The Las Vegas Raiders may have missed the playoffs in the 2020 season, but quarterback Derek Carr had one of his best seasons as a professional. 

Carr threw for a career-high 4,103 yards, 27 touchdowns and just nine interceptions (his second-lowest INT total of his career) in 2020, and the current odds at WynnBET point to him having another big season in 2021. 

After finishing just outside the top 10 in passing yards last season, Carr has +2500 odds to lead the NFL in passing (11th) which has him tied with Russell Wilson, who was ninth in the league last season. The bigger factor may be that oddsmakers expect Carr to keep the turnovers at a minimum again, as he’s near the bottom of the odds list to lead the NFL in interceptions at +4000. 

"I remember the night before every practice, I'd be stressed out," Carr said of early in his career. "In my head, I'm just hard on myself. I'm thinking about everything like, 'I got to do that right.' I'm checking my notes like, 'I got to do that. I wrote this down, got to fix that.'

"Now, it's just so free."

Carr will need to play free, and play well, if the Raiders want to make some noise in the AFC in 2021.

The Raiders aren’t expected to have a great season, as WynnBET has them projected to finish in last in the AFC West (+2000 odds to win the division), and they are projected to win just seven games with the over/under set as a pick’em. 

While oddsmakers aren’t buying the Raiders in 2021, Carr’s teammates think the quarterback has what it takes to make them a contender. 

"He's real cerebral," running back Kenyan Drake said of Carr. "[Head coach Jon] Gruden just kind of gives him the keys and allows him to go out there and make the necessary checks. ... Aside from the physical -- because he's a great quarterback and a great arm -- I feel like he's definitely a sneaky athlete.

"A lot of people don't give him the respect that I feel like he deserves with his legs. I'm going to continue to be impressed by him day in and day out."

The Raiders will open the season against Wilson and the Seattle Seahawks. WynnBET currently has the Raiders as a 1.5-point favorite and they are -120 to start the season at 1-0.

Can Derek Carr lead the Raiders to more than seven wins? Get in on the action with the WynnBET app.