Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Derek Carr took to the podium for his weekly press conference Wednesday, two days after head coach Jon Gruden resigned due to one of the larger scandals in modern NFL history.
In talking to the media, Carr had some rather interesting takes.
“It’s hard because I love the man so much. I have family members that have done things. I think more than anything coach needs people to love him. But at the same time what’s right is right and what’s wrong is wrong,” Carr told reporters.
That’s certainly an interesting way to go about it given that Jon Gruden resigned after a trove of emails depicted the Super Bowl coach in a misogynistic, homophobic and racist manner.
Derek Carr defending Jon Gruden?
“I love the man — but hate the sin,” Carr said. “If we started opening up everyone’s private emails and texts, people would start sweating a little bit. But maybe that’s what they should do for all coaches, GMs and owners from now on. You have to open up everything, see what happens.”
That’s also a weird way to go about it. Because Gruden was caught in the act, we should look into the personal emails and text messages of every coach and general manager around the league? Come on.
Carr did have a somewhat contentious relationship with Gruden during their three-plus years together. However, the two grew pretty close. From a personal standpoint, this has to be hard on the three-time Pro Bowl quarterback. He also touched on his emotions.
“A lot of emotions obviously,” Carr said. “Didn’t see all of this coming. Caught us all by surprise. There will be a day for those feelings. But from an emotional standpoint, I’ve got a job to do.”
Carr and his Raiders head to Denver to take on the Broncos Sunday with interim head coach Rich Bisaccia leading the charge. He was promoted following Gruden’s resignation and also met with the media on Wednesday.
“I feel it’s important to acknowledge the significance of this moment,” Bisaccia said on Wednesday. “Coach Gruden gave me a chance to coach in the National Football League and I’ll always be appreciative of that. That being said, we all have a responsibility here. We have to be accountable to our words and our actions. No one person is bigger than the Raiders shield. The Raiders have always stood for diversity, inclusion and social justice. It’s important to live those ideals and carry them into the future. We can’t change the past, but we can do more to maybe make tomorrow better.”
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