Dave Ziegler: Raiders may not have “immediate answer” at quarterback this year

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We know that Derek Carr will not be the Raiders quarterback this year, but we do not know who will be taking snaps when the team returns to action later this year.

There are several paths that the Raiders could take to filling that spot. They could sign or trade for a veteran, draft a player at the top of the draft, draft a player to develop in the later rounds, or go with a stopgap starter until they find someone who they believe fits the bill for the long run.

During an appearance on the Bussin’ With the Boys podcast that was taped before Carr was released, General Manager Dave Ziegler talked about being in the position to make that call and acknowledged that the team may not come up with that long-term answer this offseason.

“We’re in charge of filling the most important position on the team,” Ziegler said. “There’s some pressure that comes along with that, and however we fill it, it doesn’t mean we’re going to have an immediate answer this year. But, at the end of the day, we have to have an answer in some form or fashion. There’s pressure that comes along with it. That’s also part of the excitement too.”

If the Raiders don’t find an answer that leads to improved results on the field, Ziegler’s is likely going to be feeling a lot more pressure than excitement about his position when he resumes the search for that player in 2024.

82 responses to “Dave Ziegler: Raiders may not have “immediate answer” at quarterback this year

  1. Good job by Ziegler to communicate the obvious and common sense, as opposed to immature bozos who actually think humans in a locker room is the same thing as a video game or playing in fantasy football leagues.

    Year 1 is a clean out/assessment period.

    Year 2 is figure out who your qb will be. After the good work McD did with Mac Jones in just 1 year bodes well for Oakland whether it’s building off that good 1 start Stidham had or drafting a qb to possibly beat Stidham out.

  2. Lamar Jackson is probably not going back to Baltimore, tey signing him, and if not Jimmy G as a a place holder. Fields is apparently also available for a 2nd rounder.

  3. Great job. You took a playoff team, added a top receiver, and put them on a multi-year rebuilding path. Brilliant.

  4. All those brand new PSL and season ticket holders must absolutely love that answer!

  5. Lol that translates to “Mark Davis cant afford a good QB, but maybe we’ll draft an affordable one in the 2nd or 3rd round.”

  6. Thought they had a guy. He played after Carr was benched. Think he came out of Baylor. He’s pretty good.

  7. dddd9ers says:
    February 21, 2023 at 6:19 pm
    And how is this different than any other year??

    01Rate This

    —————-

    Quality decision making and a culture change.

    Ziegler isn’t going to have dumb, selifsh players in that locker room.

    That’s how.

  8. The guy really doesn’t need an answer right now he’s got plenty of time and multiple avenues to go down, he’ll be fine.

  9. In other words….Ziegler is hoping he can get a few more years salary from Mark Davis before he is fired for incompetence….Al is probably rolling in his grave.

  10. Baker Mayfield was born to be a Raiders. We miss him here in Cleveland. Watson is not all that. We will ne er win anything with the Haslam family owning the team. People here have no faith in their high turnover / buy your way out of mistakes / big turnover ownership. Baker was just another casualty of that flawed ownership model. After all… what have we really won. A playoff victory over the Steelers. Our first in 20 years.

  11. As a Raiders fan, I laugh at the people who bring up how they were a playoff team, yeah cause playing backup and third stringers or qbs missing practice all week because of COVID, and barely beating these poor teams had no bearings on winning three games. They were a 7 win team disguised as a 9 win team.

  12. WOW!

    The Raiders are truly bottom of the barrel again>>>>>>>Here’s to another two decades of failure.

    #chasingtheLions

  13. There was a guy named Jared Stidham who started the last two games. Can’t we at least start there? How about 2 years 10 million total. His quarterback rating for 8 quarters of play against the 49ers and KC is 89.2. Derek Carr had a rating of 86.3 for the rest of the season. Stidham has an upside, a potential upside plus he knows the system. Get Him Signed! At least we will have one QB on the Roster. Why not grab Joe Flacco if he can be had at 10-12 million a season then draft a QB in rounds 1 or 2 if what’s available looks good. That would give the Raiders two young guys, one with 3 NFL starts plus a veteran backup.

  14. I. e. we’re going to tank. Wise strategy. Get Williams or Maye. Just ask the Bengals. You were never going to win anything (and they didn’t) with Carr. Fix the defense. Draft good players.

  15. heLLpaso says:
    February 21, 2023 at 6:47 pm

    As a Raiders fan, I laugh at the people who bring up how they were a playoff team, yeah cause playing backup and third stringers or qbs missing practice all week because of COVID, and barely beating these poor teams had no bearings on winning three games. They were a 7 win team disguised as a 9 win team.

    _________________________

    Hahahahaha! You mean like Max Crobsy’s pinnacle career moment against 3rd/4th stringer O-Linemen?

    The Raiders suck and will continue to suck dude, it’s not that hard to figure out!

  16. Then why did you guys trade for Devante Adams? Is this a bizarre plot to derail his career?

  17. You just cant make this up only trash heap teams like the Raiders have a GM who says dumb stuff like this to the media. Why say it out loud for a soundbite anyways? Mark Davis has ruined a once proud franchise. Al is officially rolling in his grave right now

  18. Take the time to build this team the right way. Terrible drafts by Gruden and Mayock wasted a lot of draft capital.

    Build through the draft. Add a few key free agents. Find the right QB for this system. All you need to know is that rookie Mac Jones played better in his first year in this system than 9-year vet Carr played this year.

    Whether it’s this year or next, get a QB who can compete with Mahomes.

    When you had Carr as your QB, and you got him the best WR in football and he had a completion percentage 10-15 percentage points behind the top QBs in the league in the red zone, you know he’s not the QB you need to win.

  19. whateverworks77 says:
    February 21, 2023 at 6:31 pm
    In other words….Ziegler is hoping he can get a few more years salary from Mark Davis before he is fired for incompetence….Al is probably rolling in his grave.

    183Rate This
    ————-

    Ziegler just got there. My goodness, how obtuse are you people? Proper cutlure and teambuilding takes years. 2022 was always an assess and clean out year.

    Yeah, Al Davis wslas awesome as a teambuilder in the Cap Era.

    LOL

  20. They should be able to find a QB. We just had two first ballot HOF QB’s finish their careers. Drew Brees was a second-round pick, and Tom Brady was a sixth rounder. Another HOFer, Aaron Rodgers might be retiring soon, and he was the 24th pick in the draft. We just had a super bowl featuring Mahomes, who went #10, and Jalen Hurts, another second round pick. Unless Mark Davis completely blundered hiring these guys, they should be able to find a good QB with the 7th pick. Often, the best QB doesn’t come off the board first.

  21. [Phone rings} “Hello Bill, it’s me, Josh. Can you come to pick me up? I want to come home. I don’t want to stay here anymore.”

  22. Just what Davante Adams signed up for when going to the Raiders. They had Carr, Jacobs, Waller, Renfro, and Adams was a missing piece. Now Carr is gone, Jacobs might be gone. And now the GM is sending a warnings to fans that the QB position might not be addressed in FA at this point for ’23. Wow much has changed in one season.

    Regarding the BM comment above, Browns fans do not miss Baker Mayfield one bit.

  23. religionisforidiots says:
    All those brand new PSL and season ticket holders must absolutely love that answer!
    ==

    A surprsingly large number of those PSL and season ticket holders couldn’t care less what kind of product that organization puts on the field.
    A great many are casinos and hotels that bought tickets and seats as comps for out-of-town guests who want a little getaway weekend to gamble and see their favorite team play on the road.
    But yeah, I do feel for that percentage of Las Vegas and especially loyal California fans who bought tickets and road trip to see the Raiders play.

  24. religionisforidiots says:
    February 21, 2023 at 6:19 pm
    All those brand new PSL and season ticket holders must absolutely love that answer!
    ________________________________________________________________________________________

    Actually,90% of them don’t care because they don’t go to any games, they just sell them to visiting teams fans!

  25. Go with Stidham and a veteran backup for one year. Use most all of this year’s draft choices and free agency money for OL and the defense. That’s already good enough to have a better season than last year.

  26. I have a couple thoughts.

    The NFL needs to have a weighted lottery for the draft. Teams shouldn’t tank.

    Ziegler is prepping the fanbase for disappointment. No proven QB is going to want to come to the Raiders. Unless they trade up to 1,2, or 3… they aren’t getting a top QB draft pick.

    Stidham looked good, because new QBs always do. Opposing teams have no tape and can’t prepare. It kinda takes defensive scheming off the table. Once there’s tape, that’s when it gets real.

    Mayfield is the opposite of who the Raiders supposedly want. They want somebody to set the tone for team culture.

  27. This guy is a clown. He ran Cutler and several other players out of town in Denver and brought in Matt Cassel. Didn’t work. Running Carr out of town won’t work either. Raiders will go back to being cellar dwellars. Glad old bowl cut gave him a chance. McDaniels won’t last 2 more years. Clownshow!

  28. touchback6 says:
    February 21, 2023 at 7:10 pm
    whateverworks77 says:
    February 21, 2023 at 6:31 pm
    In other words….Ziegler is hoping he can get a few more years salary from Mark Davis before he is fired for incompetence….Al is probably rolling in his grave.

    183Rate This
    ————-

    Ziegler just got there. My goodness, how obtuse are you people? Proper cutlure and teambuilding takes years. 2022 was always an assess and clean out year

    ——————————————–

    Sure let’s clean out and assess a 10-7 playoff team, one that was 8-8 the year before, and turn it into one that goes 6-11. Shear brilliance. Well at least they beat the Pats.

  29. bcpuckett says:
    February 21, 2023 at 8:26 pm
    touchback6 says:
    February 21, 2023 at 7:10 pm
    whateverworks77 says:
    February 21, 2023 at 6:31 pm
    In other words….Ziegler is hoping he can get a few more years salary from Mark Davis before he is fired for incompetence….Al is probably rolling in his grave.

    183Rate This
    ————-

    Ziegler just got there. My goodness, how obtuse are you people? Proper cutlure and teambuilding takes years. 2022 was always an assess and clean out year

    ——————————————–

    Sure let’s clean out and assess a 10-7 playoff team, one that was 8-8 the year before, and turn it into one that goes 6-11. Shear brilliance. Well at least they beat the Pats.

    01Rate This

    —————

    As playoff team?

    Beat the Pats? Gee, it only took you 20 years! Losers.

    Your whole fanbase is so dumb thinking you’re going to immediately have a winner. Success takes years to not only maintain but to accomplish.

    I am convinced some of you are not employed or have a good career because of what you type here.

    Mark Davis and his father have been clueless meddling morons since the cap started in 1993.

  30. This is absolutely embarrassing. You get one of the top receivers in the league who left his team with a first ballot HoF QB just because of the uncertainty the QB kept raising, just to release your current QB and say that there is going to be uncertainty at the QB position for the follow season.

    The first time in a long time the Raiders got a big free agent (that has all his marbles up top ), it also might be the last time in a long time. Players pay attention to things like this, it doesn’t instill confidence in a franchise at all.

  31. Someone on this thread said “Good Job”.

    Fireable offense.. you had a starting QB… now you don’t and you are admitting you might not FOR THIS NEXT WHOLE SEASON. Whose fault is that? Carr fan or not, this is blatant mismanagement of personnel.

  32. So in other words wait till 2024 smh we have replaced the Lions no commitment to excellence I blame our idiot owner for hiring the Patriot rejects….

  33. The absolute last thing the Raiders need to do is flush their draft picks down the Toilet for Aaron Rogers or the like. LV needs to BUILD A TEAM. Raiders are not one player away from a Super Bowl (unless u enjoy crack). Build and draft. Go young Not Old. Start with Jarad Stidham who out played Carr. Sign the guy for a couple of years and draft, draft, draft. If there is no home run then trade down or into next season. Get more picks and future picks. But do go after a veteran QB, but don’t pay more than 15 million a season which is chickens feed in today’s salary cap. Build don’t mortgage.

  34. danimal97 says:
    February 21, 2023 at 8:21 pm
    This guy is a clown. He ran Cutler and several other players out of town in Denver and brought in Matt Cassel. Didn’t work. Running Carr out of town won’t work either. Raiders will go back to being cellar dwellars. Glad old bowl cut gave him a chance. McDaniels won’t last 2 more years. Clownshow!

    —————–

    Dave Ziegler did no such thing.

  35. They’re creepy and they’re kooky
    Mysterious and spooky
    They’re all together loosely
    The Davis family.

    Their house is a museum
    When people come to see ’em
    They really are a screaming
    The Davis family.

    Strange
    Deranged
    Ugly

    So, put a witch’s shawl on
    A broomstick you can crawl on
    We’re gonna suffer watching
    The Davis family.

    [Insert pic of Mark “Soupbowl” Davis here]

  36. touchback6 says:
    February 21, 2023 at 8:46 pm

    Your whole fanbase is so dumb thinking you’re going to immediately have a winner. Success takes years to not only maintain but to accomplish.
    ————————————
    How long did it take BB to turn an 8-8 team into a SB champion? A: his second year. How long did it take Andy Reid to turn a 2-14 Chiefs team into a 11-5 team? A: his first year. How long did it take Nick Sirianni to turn a 4-11-1 Eagles team into a team appearing in the SB? A: two years How long did it take Sean McVay to turn a 4-12 team into a 11-5 team? A: his first year . How long to make a SB appearance A: two years. How long did it take Matt LeFluer to turn a 6-9-1 Packers team into a 13-3 team appearing in an NFC championship? A: his first year. Anything is possible.

  37. danimal97 says:
    February 21, 2023 at 8:21 pm
    This guy is a clown. He ran Cutler and several other players out of town in Denver and brought in Matt Cassel. Didn’t work. Running Carr out of town won’t work either. Raiders will go back to being cellar dwellars. Glad old bowl cut gave him a chance. McDaniels won’t last 2 more years. Clownshow!

    ============================

    He was right to run off Cutler. It’s not like he did anything but disappoint the rest of his career. The answer is definitely not Jay Cutler 2.0 aka Baker Mayfield.

  38. Very frustrated Raider fan here (since 1975) … As long as Mahomes, Kelce and Reid are together in K.C. making the playoffs each year, the Raiders are irrelevant and really the butt of everyone’s jokes. They majorly blew up any momentum in their move to Las Vegas and the feared “Black Hole” no longer exists like it used to. 49ers, Broncos, Bears and Chiefs fans have turned Allegiant Stadium into a second home stadium. On gameday, all you see is a sea of red, or orange … while Raider fans are selling their tickets to the enemy because it is a joke to imprudently spend all the hundreds of dollars investing in an incompetent owner and frustrating team. Sorry. Rant over.

  39. This is categorically the worse possible outcome the Raiders front office could have managed. How can you ask your players to do what’s best for the team, when the front office can’t even do the same. A complete clown show operation from top to bottom. 5 decades of futility and ineptness without an end in sight. Different city same clown show.

  40. Some sympathy for Raider fans please. What a mess this franchise has become, they used to be among the league’s elite teams but have recently been mired in mediocrity, at best. The Raiders look to be what the Lions used to be, bordering on hopelessness.

  41. How does a team release its current QB, without a plan to replace him? That’s the Ziegler/McDaniels way!

  42. If anyone thinks this team is going anywhere before McDaniels and Zeigler get fired, you are delusional.

    McDaniels is a ranching killer that it will take us years to get over. He is 11-28 in his last 39 starts as HC, and trending downwards.

    Good coaches make players better, not worse.

    Ultimately Mark Davis has to be responsible, picking this utter clown show over the coach who took us to the playoffs

  43. And 1 short year ago Ziggy said something completely different to sucker the Raiders into hiring him and to sucker fanatics into defending him.

  44. He’s going to keep bringing in Pats castoffs because that’s what all Belichek coaches do. He’s already got the ex-pats QB. Stidham who supposed to be the next “Tom Brady” in Pats fans eyes. You just know Josh has wanted to start him since the trade. It’s all about being smarter than everyone else, like Patricia when he coached the Lions.

  45. In lay-mans terms, Rogers shouldn’t have dreams of playing in Vegas any time soon or in this lifetime. He costs too much.
    Ditto the Jets, they can have Carr, much younger and cheaper and try and get buy with him for one season then draft their future. Rodgers, too old.

  46. As a Raiders fan, I laugh at the people who bring up how they were a playoff team, yeah cause playing backup and third stringers or qbs missing practice all week because of COVID, and barely beating these poor teams had no bearings on winning three games. They were a 7 win team disguised as a 9 win team.

    ——————

    This is so true. I was in the stands in Cleveland when the Raiders barely beat a Browns team missing 8-9 starters and using a practice squad QB.

  47. dawgpound82 says:
    February 22, 2023 at 9:13 am
    As a Raiders fan, I laugh at the people who bring up how they were a playoff team, yeah cause playing backup and third stringers or qbs missing practice all week because of COVID, and barely beating these poor teams had no bearings on winning three games. They were a 7 win team disguised as a 9 win team.

    ——————

    This is so true. I was in the stands in Cleveland when the Raiders barely beat a Browns team missing 8-9 starters and using a practice squad QB.

    |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||

    It’s not true at all, the only fact here is the Raiders are terrible regardless of their stats and win/lose record.

  48. Raiders have so mismanaged this situation at QB. They could have been honest and worked with Carr to keep him in the system through last year and into this year while working on a backup plan to wisely formulate a replacement. What they did was spiteful and they have nothing.

  49. This is what happens when you think changing the system to fit the players is the wrong way to go about winning. Josh believes in finding players who will fit his offensive scheme because he has a big ego and thinks the his system is better than the players.

  50. Nothing says dysfunction like letting your franchise QB walk without having any sort of contingency plan. Is this really the Patriot Way?

  51. He’s promisng another season with double-digit losses, then?

    Remember, these supposed geniuses inherited a playoff team with a half-dozen Pro Bowl players, another handful of players who’d been to the Pro Bowl, and highly drafted youth everywhere. They gutted the roster and what position area improved?

    And now we’re without a starting QB because we waived a four-time Pro Bowler? There seems to also be no immediate answer at GM or head coach.

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