The Raiders hope to extend franchise quarterback Derek Carr’s contract this offseason. That sits well with No. 4.
He doesn’t want to play anywhere else.
A long-term contract extension is a surefire way to make that happen.
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“They know how I feel,” Carr said Tuesday in an interview with Sirius XM Mad Dog Radio’s Adam Schein. “I’m a Raider. I’m a Raider for life. I don’t want to play anywhere else. When I got drafted, this is where I wanted to be anyway. I don’t want to go anywhere, ever. They told me they don’t want me to go anywhere, ever. Now it’s about two people who want to be together, and how do we make that happen? We’ll see.”
Extending a quarterback can be complicated with huge numbers in total dollars and guaranteed funds. The player wants fair market value. For a young talent like Carr, that’s a lot. The team wants a happy quarterback without handicapping the team long-term. That’s especially true of a Raiders club planning a big-money extension for Khalil Mack at some point, while retaining other key members of their young foundation.
Carr will be the first key extension in a cluster of them. It’s something the Raiders have planned for a while now, and expressed to Carr’s camp.
“I think they’ve been talking even since through the season, keeping a line of communication together and keeping in touch,” Carr said. “Now that it’s getting on down the line and getting serious, I think that they’re trying to fugure out a way to (get) it done. If we can do that, great. If not, I can assure you I’m just going to be out there playing football.”
NFL
Outsiders have pegged Andrew Luck’s six-year, $122 million contract with Indianapolis that contained $47 million fully guaranteed at signing – much more is guaranteed for injury -- as a benchmark.
Carr is ready to enter a contract year, but said he didn’t have a deadline for when a deal had to get done. It might help the Raiders to have it complete by the start of free agency on March 9, which would give the team greater clarity regarding this offseason’s salary cap space. That doesn’t mean it will happen then, but an extension at some point seems like a slam dunk.
"If it happens, that’ll be cool. That money’s going to help a lot of people. I’m not going to change my attire or outfits. I’m still going to wear the same clothes I’ve had since college. I’m still going to wear UGG slippers out and my wife will shake her head at me.
“…The biggest thing for me is that I don’t want it to distract my teammates. They know me, that I really don’t care. I just like to play ball, but I don’t want people asking them questions. I would want it done so they don’t have to deal with it, but I’m always going to do what’s best for my family and what’s best for the team all in one. If we can all look at each other and say we feel good about something, then we can walk away and focus on football. …I want to play ball, and I want to do it in a silver and black jersey.”