Derek Carr threw just one touchdown pass with the lead in 2020
One of the biggest criticisms of Jon Gruden’s offense in the past three years since he came back to the team was that he often lack aggression when the team held leads.
This stat from Josh Dubow of the Associated Press will not do anything to dispel that narrative.
In last 10 seasons, there have been 3 times a QB threw 100+ passes when his team was ahead and had 1 or fewer TD passes:
Derek Carr 1 TD on 101 passes in 2020
Carr 1 TD on 103 passes in 2018
Eli Manning 0 TDs on 128 passes in 2013 https://t.co/DZAqaJ05bS— Josh Dubow (@JoshDubowAP) July 26, 2021
One touchdown pass with the lead? Wow. That’s nuts.
While some may point to Carr for being the main culprit for that shocking stat, I’d point more to Gruden. Yes, Carr has some culpability in it as well. But Gruden is the one calling the playing in those situations. According to the Associated Press, the Raiders were 25th in the NFL in points per drive while holding a lead in 2020.
According to the AP, Carr threw a total of 23 touchdown passes from 2014-17 and just a total of five since Gruden became the Raiders’ coach.
Derek Carr’s TD passes w/ the lead by season for #Raiders:
2014: 2
2015: 11
2016: 5
2017: 5
2018: 1
2019: 3
2020: 1 https://t.co/be42vhufwQ— Josh Dubow (@JoshDubowAP) July 26, 2021
This is all evidence of a lack of aggression in the play calling. That will need to change if this offense expects to get to its full potential.
In other Raiders’ links:
- Darren Waller ready for fans: Raiders’ star tight end can’t wait to play in front of fans at Allegiant Stadium.
- Remembering Greg Knapp: Albert Breer has a tribute to former Raiders’ offensive coordinator Greg Knapp, who died last week after a bicycle accident at age 58.
- Predicting the future: The Athletic has some 2021 NFL predictions.
- Safety battle? CBS Sports thinks Karl Joseph could push Johnathan Abram at strong safety.