Derek Carr vs Teddy Bridgewater

Sep 21, 2014; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots defensive end Chandler Jones (95) blocks a pass by Oakland Raiders quarterback Derek Carr (4) during the first quarter at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports

Doing More With Less

Bridgewater didn’t have Adrian Peterson but had a better rushing attack than Carr, averaging 4.5 yards per carry to 3.7. Both teams had bad pass protection as the Vikings offensive line had injuries while the Raiders’ was leaky on the right side. Neither team’s No. 1 receiver from 2014 is in their prime but Raiders receiver James Jones was a No. 3 to Vikings’ Greg Jennings in their primes with the Green Bay Packers.

And Raiders receivers didn’t get open downfield or run well after catching short passes, averaging only 4.5 YAC to the Vikings 5.9. That kept Carr’s yards per attempt down and that’s a big part of a quarterback rating. According to Pro Football Focus, Bridgewater had a better quarterback rating against the blitz (87.4-80.6) but Carr was actually better with pressure.

Carr was pressured 233 times to Bridgewater’s 189 times but sacked only 10. 3 percent of the time to Bridgewater’s 20.6. Carr found his check-downs or threw the ball away while Bridgewater took sacks, which is a negative play that doesn’t affect a quarterback rating. Again, yards per attempt is what makes or breaks a quarterback rating and that’s what lowered Carr’s.

If you take into consideration who he played against, it stacks up further in favor if Carr. Carr played seven games against top-5 pass defenses and 11 against teams in the top 10 to Bridgewater’s three in the top 10. So you can see that Carr clearly did more with less against much better competition.

Next: Around Bridgewater for 2015