What happens when the Oakland Raiders quarterback breaks a finger on one of his hands? Rumors fly, fans speculate and worry, and we all wait impatiently to get the news from the injured QB or at least form the team's PR camp. Thus is the modern-day nature of the effect a team’s leader can have on the minds of the faithful. Especially when it’s the presumed future quarterback of an organization trying hard to turn around years of recent seasons ending poorly.
Once the smoke cleared the news is good for the Raider Nation in that it seems likely Carr will be actively practicing come training camp. But the deeper question from those who run the organization to the last die hard Raider fan is “what would the Raiders do if their leader couldn’t play? The process of building an arsenal of talent to compliment Carr has been well documented thus far in 2015. However what’s the plan in a scenario where Carr was out of the picture for some unforeseeable or unfortunate reason.
Is unrestricted free agent Christian Ponder the guy? Is his past performance with the Vikings likely to provide concerned Raider fans any level of comfort? Matt McGloin is in the backup mix but hasn’t proven he’s ready to be a starter that can deliver a full season of success. Cody Fajardo is a free agent sign but he is still a question mark especially when were not even sure if he’ll make the team roster for 2015.
Is Ponder then the “guy” if Carr was out? It seems so at this juncture. Purely looking at his past performance however, Ponder gives some reason for concern as he has the propensity across his career to turn over the ball considering interceptions thrown and fumbles lost during his playing time.
In all fairness you must look at the team and talent surround his past performance but putting him on the field against AFC West opponents still isn’t comforting to many. These Raider opponents all ended 2014 in the top ten in total passing defense with the Kansas City Chiefs and San Diego Chargers ranked in the best five.
Good strategies include well thought out alternative plans and we have to assume the Raiders have spent time accounting for various situations that could arise. But for now Carr is the man running the Oakland Raider offense. The mantra at this point for the Raiders should be “Just Stay Healthy”.
Once the smoke cleared the news is good for the Raider Nation in that it seems likely Carr will be actively practicing come training camp. But the deeper question from those who run the organization to the last die hard Raider fan is “what would the Raiders do if their leader couldn’t play? The process of building an arsenal of talent to compliment Carr has been well documented thus far in 2015. However what’s the plan in a scenario where Carr was out of the picture for some unforeseeable or unfortunate reason.
Is unrestricted free agent Christian Ponder the guy? Is his past performance with the Vikings likely to provide concerned Raider fans any level of comfort? Matt McGloin is in the backup mix but hasn’t proven he’s ready to be a starter that can deliver a full season of success. Cody Fajardo is a free agent sign but he is still a question mark especially when were not even sure if he’ll make the team roster for 2015.
Is Ponder then the “guy” if Carr was out? It seems so at this juncture. Purely looking at his past performance however, Ponder gives some reason for concern as he has the propensity across his career to turn over the ball considering interceptions thrown and fumbles lost during his playing time.
In all fairness you must look at the team and talent surround his past performance but putting him on the field against AFC West opponents still isn’t comforting to many. These Raider opponents all ended 2014 in the top ten in total passing defense with the Kansas City Chiefs and San Diego Chargers ranked in the best five.
Good strategies include well thought out alternative plans and we have to assume the Raiders have spent time accounting for various situations that could arise. But for now Carr is the man running the Oakland Raider offense. The mantra at this point for the Raiders should be “Just Stay Healthy”.