On Thursday night, as Derek Carr hobbled off the field with a groin injury, there wasn’t the same sense of dread that there was in 2016 when he broke his fibula. At that time, Derek was carrying the Raiders’ offense with big comeback wins and they were headed for their 12th win of the season, heading for the playoffs.
This time around the Raiders have been reeling in the past few games and don’t look like a playoff team. They also have a former starter in Marcus Mariota as the backup. So, when Carr went down, most were like ‘hey, let’s see what this Mariota kid’s got.’
Mariota came in and the offense didn’t seem to miss a beat. He led the Raiders on four scoring drives, three for touchdowns.
“What Marcus did last night was spectacular,” Gruden said Friday or Mariota’s performance… “When this kid is healthy, this guy is a special playmaker and I think he proved it last night.”
If nothing else it allows the Raiders to not have to bring Derek Carr back in if he’s not ready. His status is currently still undecided according to Gruden.
“I met with Derek this morning and he is still sore,” Gruden said. “I think there’s a chance but being conservative right now, I’d say it’s 50/50. . . Derek’s health will be determined here in a couple days.
The Raiders have nine days before they face the Dolphins. A rare Saturday night game the day after Christmas. Sounds like Gruden will be making his decision before they take the field again for practices next week.
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