Derek Carr Could Get $25MM Per Year
Raiders quarterback Derek Carr won’t negotiate a contract extension once training camp starts, but that could end up being a moot point. The Raiders and Carr have been engaging in “good faith” negotiations in an effort to get a deal done by the camp deadline, reports Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). If the two sides do reach an agreement, it’s “very possible” Carr will set a new benchmark and become the NFL’s first $25MM-per-year player, according to Rapoport.
Both the league’s ever-rising salary cap and Carr’s performance since entering the pros as a second-round pick in 2014 have him poised to land elite money. Carr is coming off his best season, albeit one that ended early with a broken fibula, as he tossed 28 touchdowns against six interceptions and helped the Raiders to 12 wins and their first playoff berth since 2002.
Colts quarterback Andrew Luck fell just shy of the $25MM mark on the extension he signed last summer, when he inked a five-year, $122.97MM pact that includes a record $87MM in guarantees. Jason Cole of Bleacher Report noted last month that the 26-year-old Carr’s next deal could surpass Luck’s, which jibes with the latest from Rapoport. And Rapoport adds that Kirk Cousins‘ talks with the Redskins could affect Carr’s discussions with the Raiders. In the event Washington extends Cousins for a record amount before Oakland locks up Carr, the latter might have to go back to the drawing board in negotiations, Rapoport suggests, which could be problematic if it happens close to the start of camp.
Without an extension, Carr would play 2017 for a relative pittance and presumably either re-sign with the Raiders or get the $22MM-plus franchise tag next offseason. The Raiders would rather not have to resort to deploying the tag, as Cole reported, so it would behoove them to re-up Carr over the next month-plus.
Raiders' Relocation Spurred Marshawn Lynch Out Of Retirement
- The Raiders’ forthcoming move to Las Vegas inspired Marshawn Lynch to come out of retirement and join the franchise as its time in Oakland nears an end, the running back told media on Tuesday (Twitter links via SiriusXM NFL Radio and Michael Gehlken of the Las Vegas Review-Journal). Lynch, an Oakland native, expressed regret that “a lot of Oakland kids won’t have the opportunity to see their idols play football anymore.” The Raiders are down to their final two or three years in Oakland and will head to Vegas in 2020. Lynch won’t make that trek, it seems, as he’s already 31 and only under contract through next season.
Minor NFL Transactions: 6/5/17
Here are today’s minor moves.
- The Patriots signed cornerback William Likely and waived defensive end Corey Vereen with an injury designation. A 5-foot-7, 175-pound player, Likely could factor into New England’s return-men competition, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com tweets. The rookie UDFA played four years at Maryland and notched six interceptions as a sophomore in 2014.
- Former Minnesota Golden Gophers linebacker Jack Lynn signed with the Falcons, who waived fullback Soma Vainuku to make room, Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com reports. He’s a UDFA rookie. Vanaiku’s ouster should pit Derrick Coleman and rookie Tyler Renew against one another at fullback, per McClure.
- The Broncos waived rookie UDFA tackle Erik Austell, Nicki Jhabvala of the Denver Post tweets. A Charleston Southern product, Austell was one of the 13 UDFAs the Broncos signed coming out of draft weekend.
- The Chiefs added former Texans wideout Tevin Jones, Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle tweets. Jones entered the league as a UDFA out of Memphis last year. He hasn’t seen any game action. The Texans signed Jones to a reserve/futures deal in January but cut him last month.
- The Saints signed wide receiver Dan Arnold and cut defensive end Drew Iddings, Nick Underhill of The Advocate reports (on Twitter). Arnold comes to New Orleans from Division III Wisconsin-Platteville. Iddings spent time in camp with the Raiders last year and was with both the Panthers and Saints this spring.
- Swapping out interior offensive linemen, the Titans signed center Marc Spelman and waived center/guard Karim Barton. The latter has bounced around for a few years, being signed to reserve/futures deals by the Browns (2015), Texans (’16) and Titans (’17). The 25-year-old has never played in a game. Spelman comes out of Illinois State. He went to the Bears’ rookie minicamp last month.
Marshawn Lynch Could Earn An Extra $5.5MM In Incentives
- According to ESPN.com’s Sheil Kapadia, Raiders running back Marshawn Lynch has several performance-based incentives in his contract that could add $5.5MM to his salary in 2017 and $2MM in 2018. As the writer explains, the running back could earn this extra money via incentives for “rushing yards, rushing touchdowns, the Raiders making the playoffs, Lynch making the Pro Bowl, Lynch earning regular-season MVP honors and Lynch earning Super Bowl MVP honors.”
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Opinion: Derek Carr Could Wait For Contract Until 2018
- Derek Carr has already indicated he won’t discuss an extension once the regular season begins, but Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk opines that the Raiders quarterback may not want to negotiate a new deal until the campaign concludes. At that point, Carr would be able to exert enormous leverage over Oakland, as the club would be forced to deploy the exclusive franchise tag to ward off potential suitors. Thanks to the extraordinary value of the quarterback franchise tag, Carr could demand north of $90MM in three-year cash flow, and could also extract concessions such as having his future salaries tied to a percentage of the salary cap, per Florio.
Derek Carr Discusses Contract Negotiations
Derek Carr emphasized today that he has no interest in discussing a contract extension with the Raiders once training camp starts.
Raiders Sign Six Draft Picks
- The Raiders have announced the signings of six picks, meaning they’ve now locked up two-thirds of their nine-player draft class. Fourth-round offensive lineman David Sharpe, fifth-round linebacker Marquel Lee and four seventh-rounders – Shalom Luani (defensive back, Washington State), Jylan Ware (offensive tackle, Alabama State), Elijah Hood (running back, North Carolina) and Treyvon Hester (defensive tackle, Toledo) – are now under contract. The 6-foot-6, 343-pound Sharpe was the No. 1 left tackle at Florida over the two previous years, starting 26 games, though he’s likely to serve as a guard in the pros, according to Lance Zierlein of NFL.com. Lee, meanwhile, saw action in all four of his years at Wake Forest and racked up 100 tackles in two of those seasons. All told, he amassed 41 tackles for loss and 14.5 sacks (7.5 last year) with the Demon Deacons. Despite that impressive production, Zierlein regards Lee as more of a potential backup linebacker/special teamer than a starter in the NFL.
Calvin Johnson A Guest At Raiders Practice
Former Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson has been observing Raiders practices this week as a guest of offensive coordinator Todd Downing, per Eddie Paskal of Raiders.com. Downing was on Detroit’s staff from 2009-13 – a large portion of Johnson’s career – and while it’s fun to imagine Megatron coming out of retirement to join the Raiders’ high-octane attack, there’s no indication he has any interest in doing so.
Derek Carr Extension Talks To Ramp Up?
Negotiations between the Raiders and quarterback Derek Carr are expected to gain steam following the conclusion of this week’s owner’s meetings, sources tell Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (video link).
Any deal between Oakland and Carr is likely to be a “strong step above” the five-year, $122.97MM extension the Colts handed fellow signal-caller Andrew Luck last summer. Luck is currently the highest-paid quarterback in the league with a $24.594MM annual salary, but Carr could conceivably top that figure.
Carr, 26, may hold a bit more leverage than did Luck, as the Raiders don’t hold a fifth-year option on Carr given that he was originally a second-round selection. Oakland could deploy the franchise tag in 2018 at a cost of more than $22MM, but the club prefers not to use that tender, per Cole.
Raiders general manager Reggie McKenzie said in April that he’s been discussing an extension with Carr “for months”, and characterized those talks as “super positive.” Both McKenzie and Carr have expressed confidence that a new deal will get at some point.
Raiders Discussed Terms With Perry Riley
- Perry Riley received steady playing time despite being picked up during the season, and the Raiders attempted to gauge what it would take to bring back the middle linebacker, Vic Tafur of the San Francisco Chronicle reports (on Twitter). It sounds like the negotiations progressed well, with numbers being exchanged, but Tafur reports the sides couldn’t agree on a figure that would bring Riley back for a second Raiders year. Reggie McKenzie said earlier this month the door isn’t closed on that prospect, but Tafur said the team will attempt to see what it has on its defensive second level before revisiting a Riley reunion. The former Redskins starter will be going into his age-29 season. The Raiders did not use a high draft pick on a linebacker and have several uncertain cogs vying for time in the middle alongside Bruce Irvin and UFA addition Jelani Jenkins.