Oakland Raiders quarterback Derek Carr had a true breakout year in his second NFL season. However, head coach Jack Del Rio still wants to see more out of his young QB. Del Rio understands how rare it is to find a solid contributor under center, which is why he wants Carr to keep developing into the franchise signal-caller he knows he can become.
"I'm just glad we have one," Del Rio said Wednesday at the NFL combine, via ESPN. "I feel like we have a really good young quarterback in Derek Carr. He took a significant jump last year for us. We feel like there's a lot of room for growth there and we're really looking forward to getting into this offseason and further developing him, further developing our football team.
"But year, it's imperative that you find a guy that you believe can lead your franchise, and we think we have one."
The Raiders know all too well how painful it can be without a quality quarterback under centers. Oakland has been searching for a stable passer ever since Rich Gannon played his last snap for the team in 2004. Since then, the Raiders have put their faith in the likes of Kerry Collins, Marques Tuiasosopo, Aaron Brooks, Andrew Walter, Daunte Culpepper, Josh McCown, JaMarcus Russell, Bruce Gradkowski, Charlie Frye, Jason Campbell, Kyle Boller, Carson Palmer, Terrelly Pryor, Matt Leinart, Matt Flynn, Matt McGloin and Matt Schaub. None of them have worked out.
"Bottom line is, Derek's a good young player," Del Rio said. "He exhibits a lot of leadership. He's got tremendous arm talent; he can make all the throws. I sat up here last year and said I believe he can throw the deep ball well. I think that's something we saw on tape. He just didn't have guys that could go get the deep balls [his first season].
"I feel live we've collected a couple of guys that could go get it, like Amari [Cooper], and with that we saw him hit a higher percentage of deep balls and throw more of them last year. So that's something he has, his arm talent, and we'll just continue to grow him."
While Carr threw fewer balls 20 yards or more downfield in his second season compared to his first, he was much more effective this past year. In 2015, he completed 37.1 percent of such attempts after posting a league-low 22.4 completion rate in 2014. His improved downfield prowess and his ability to handle the blitz better have Del Rio excited for the 2016 season.
"As a young player, there's so much to learn at that position," Del Rio said. "The command that you have to have to be comfortable to run the whole offense, to be able to get in and out of plays, to be able to direct traffic, some of the game management, some of the subtleties that he can help us execute from that position, is so imperative that the quarterback really understands all those things and he's hungry for it.
"The great thing about Derek is he's a real hard worker. He understands the importance of working hard and putting in the time and really understanding his prep. ... It's just a matter of time. It takes time, it takes experience. He's got two years under his belt and we're looking forward to Year 3."
