Four-time Las Vegas Raiders Pro Bowl quarterback Derek Carr will hit NFL free agency early this coming week.
NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport is reporting that Carr has informed the Raiders he won’t accept a trade to any team ahead of his base salary being guaranteed on Tuesday. As such, Vegas will be forced to release Carr before said deadline. It enables him to get an early start on free agency with what promises to be an extensive market for the veteran quarterback.
Carr’s base of $32.9 million for the 2023 season and another $7.5 million for 2024 becomes fully guaranteed on Tuesday. It’s one of the primary reasons Vegas opted to bench Carr late during the 2022 season. Said guarantees are for injury only.
All of this comes with a backdrop of a multi-day visit between Carr and the New Orleans Saints. Once the Raiders gave Carr permission to meet with New Orleans, it became clear that compensation in a trade had been worked out between the two sides. That’s obviously no longer in the cards.
- Derek Carr stats (2014-22): 65% completion, 35,222 yards, 217 TD, 99 INT, 86.3 QB rating
There’s going to be a ton of interest in Carr’s services in free agency despite the down 2022 season he had under Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels. We’re talking about a four-time Pro Bowler with a track record of succeeding under the umbrella of a poorly run franchise.
Related: Derek Carr and the highest-paid NFL quarterbacks of 2023
In addition to the Saints, we’re expecting teams such as the Tennessee Titans, Washington Commanders, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Carolina Panthers to have interest in Derek Carr. If they miss out on Aaron Rodgers, the New York Jets will be among other teams joining the sweepstakes.