Oakland Raiders quarterback Derek Carr might still be just a "maybe" when it comes to the true franchise signal-caller conversation, but there's simply no doubting that the Raiders 2015 prospects would suffer a major blow were Carr to miss much, if any, time now or during the year.
Carr, set to embark on his second NFL season and looking to deliver on the promise he displayed in his first professional football campaign, has been dealing with a right ring finger injury that has limited him thus far in voluntary offseason work.
While some have suggested the injury could be severe enough to require surgery, a recent report reveals that Raiders fans can rest easy where Carr is concerned.
Scott Bair of CSNBayArea.com reported Tuesday that, "a league source insists that Carr's injury is minor."
Carr donned a helmet and cleats for this week's round of Raiders OTAs, but did not do much - he mostly handed the ball off and participated in individual drills according to Bair.
"Derek was able to take some snaps," head coach Jack Del Rio said, via Bair. "We'll bring him along. Things with him are progressing."
It was actually a pleasant surprise that Carr was able to take part in OTAs, though his status for mandatory minicamp in early June remains in question.
The expectation is that Carr will be fully healthy for training camp in July, when bullets will begin to fly for real and the true offseason work gets underway.
Carr, 24, finished his rookie season with 348 completions on 599 attempts for 3,270-yards passing, 21 touchdowns, 12 interceptions, a 76.6 quarterback rating and a 58.1 completion percentage.
More importantly, he looked the part of a starting-caliber quarterback at the NFL level, displaying a veteran savvy and understanding beyond his years and experience.
