Raiders coach Jon Gruden has raved during Hard Knocks about quarterbacks like Nathan Peterman and Kyler Murray. Gruden hasn’t said much about his current starting quarterback, Derek Carr.
On Tuesday, Gruden said plenty about his expectations for Carr in 2019. Specifically, Gruden wants Carr to throw the ball deep.
“We got to throw the ball down the field and if it’s incomplete or we get the catch, we can always challenge [NFL senior V.P. of officiating Al] Riveron in New York and see what he thinks,” Gruden said, via Vic Tafur of TheAthletic.com. “It’s going to be a very, very subjective call this year, but we are trying to be more aggressive.”
Gruden’s reasoning is simple. Willingness to throw deep arises from the ability to send targets who can catch the ball deep.
“The better your receivers are, the more aggressive you are,” Gruden said. “And the better your line is, the more vertical shots you can call. We think we are better on the line. We think we are better outside. With that being said, we are going to take more shots, I hope.”
Gruden also offered somewhat limited praise of the guy who will be responsible to throw the ball accurately to the receivers, wherever they may be.
“He looks comfortable to me,” Gruden said regarding Carr, via Tafur. “I think he’s had a great OTA period, he’s had a great camp. He’s only had one [preseason] drive, but he’s got great rapport, I think, with his receivers. He showed a lot of leadership and command and I think the better our defense plays, the better our offensive line and receivers are, I think the better he’ll be. . . . And I just hope I don’t screw it up.”
The more accurate assessment may be that Gruden hopes Carr doesn’t screw it up. But Gruden continues to tiptoe around Carr, who still may not be able to handle the full, unfiltered, F-bomb-rich Gruden experience.