Carr to new coach Gruden: bring it
QB says he can handle his fiery coach’s criticism
Derek Carr knows the reputation Jon Gruden brings to the Raiders, one of relentless pressure on quarterbacks to extract each and every ounce from them. He’s ready for it.
And he wants everyone who doubts his ability to handle that scrutiny to know something.
“If anyone knows anything about me, which not a lot of people do because they don’t take the time, they would know that some of my best years I’ve had, not only in the NFL but in college, are with coaches that were extremely tough on me and extremely demanding,” Carr said on 95.7 The Game on Monday afternoon. “For me that’s nothing. That’s easy. That’s where I thrive. Because as long as I know that you care about me, that you love me, you can say whatever you want to me as long as it helps me get better.”
Carr, more often than not, comes off as lighthearted. He’s quick to absorb blame regardless of the situation — he shouldered blame this season for some of his receivers’ blatant drops, saying he should throw better passes — and never shifted blame to teammates. Former Raiders QB Rich Gannon has said multiple times that Carr needs to be more demanding of his peers.
From that attitude may stem the belief that Carr isn’t thickskinned enough to handle Gruden.
Whether it be through his spring QB camp series on ESPN, in the “Monday Night Football” broadcast booth or dating back to his first NFL coaching stint, Gruden is a quarterbacks guy
through and through.
Will Derek Carr be a Jon Gruden guy, though?
“I hope he’s really hard on me and I think that he will be,” Carr said. “We’ve had great conversations. I know that he loves me. He tells me multiple times when I’ve talked to him that he loves me. He knows that I love him, but he knows that I love winning and I know that he loves winning.
“I don’t think that this is
gonna be a problem at all and actually it’s not that I think, I know it’s not gonna be a problem at all. We’re gonna have a great relationship. We’re gonna be hard on one another, push each other to be better and that’s how it should be. I’m really looking forward to it and I’m excited.”
Carr’s communication with Gruden has been limited due to NFL restrictions regarding coach-player interactions in the offseason. Carr said the two haven’t discussed scheme — no Spider 2 Y Banana talk just yet — while Gruden fills out his staff first. Yet Carr eagerly
awaits diving into the Xs and Os with his new head coach.
The last time Gruden and Carr really delved into tactics was 2014, when Carr spent the day with Gruden for his QB camp segment. The clip circulated on Twitter before Gruden’s official hiring. Gruden confesses his admiration for Carr, who bashfully responds, “I appreciate that. Let’s go win some championships now.”
“Back then it was really fun. Everyone only got to see the 30-minute segment that we did, but I was really there all day,” Carr said. “We had a whole 12-hour
day it seemed like together. We had a great relationship that started then. We kept in contact all throughout the years.”
Now the pair has a chance, however slim, to make that wish a reality. And Carr wants everyone to know his relationship with his new head coach will be the last thing holding the Raiders back from accomplishing that goal.
“I have talked to him a little bit and we’re both fired up just to work hard,” Carr said. “I’m eager for him to take me under his wing. Let’s see what we can do.”