Derek Carr vs Teddy Bridgewater: Carr Separating

Sep 20, 2015; Oakland, CA, USA; Oakland Raiders quarterback Derek Carr (4) throws a touchdown pass against the Baltimore Ravens in the fourth quarter at O.co Coliseum. The Raiders defeated the Ravens 37-33. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports

This Year

The NFL media was all-in on Bridgewater, believing that he would make the big jump into year two. This preseason, he was sharp with a QB rating of 111.3 while Carr wasn’t with a QB rating of 58.8. Then the regular season comes and Bridgewater was looked upon as “taking a step back” after their opener.

In a loss to the San Francisco 49ers with Peterson ineffective when used, he failed to throw TD but had an INT. Carr didn’t really have a first game and while he wasn’t sharpe early, he went out with a hand injury mid-way through the second quarter. So neither one of them had the game they were looking for to show they made the jump in year two.

Then in his second game, Bridgewater was very efficient, going 14-18 for 153 yards, 1 TD and no INTs in a win over the Detriot Lions. But of course, this would come on a day that Peterson ran for 134 yards and had 58 yards receiving. Around a third of Bridgewaters passing yards came on one play where he flipped it underhand to Peterson while on the way to getting sacked.

Carr hasn’t had the benefit of a good running game because the Raiders haven’t used it. Their defense is the worst in the NFL right now to so they put the game in Carr’s hands. And his response in his second game was 31-46, 351 yards, three TDs, one INT, a QB rating of over 100, and a game-winning TD pass to lift his team to victory.

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