Raiders' Derek Carr Reportedly Won't Extend $40M Contract Trigger Date

Derek Carr will have more than $40 million in guarantees kick in on Feb. 15 if he's still under contract. Unsurprisingly, he's not going to extend that deadline for the Las Vegas Raiders.

"I don't think that would be best for me," he told reporters Thursday.

Carr also said that the Raiders haven't allowed him to talk to potential trade partners, and that he would utilize his no-trade clause if he didn't like a destination Las Vegas tried to send him to this offseason.

"That's for [the Raiders] to talk about," he said in regard to being prevented from talking to interested teams. "I'm just obeying the rules. If it gets to the date [and I get released], then I'll be able to talk to all my friends."

Given that the Raiders now have less than two weeks to make a decision on how they want to proceed and haven't allowed Carr to speak with teams, releasing him feels like the most logical course of action.

When Las Vegas chose to bench Carr for the final two games of the regular season, it was a pretty strong indication that his time with the organization had come to a close. All the way back in January, the Raiders reportedly started scanning the trade market for potential deals:

That same day, Carr bid farewell to Raiders fans:

The 31-year-old Carr, a three-time Pro Bowler, didn't have his best season in 2022, throwing for 3,522 yards, 24 touchdowns and 14 interceptions while completing just 60.8 percent of his passes. The Raiders went just 6-9 in his starts in an overall disappointing season for the franchise after high expectations coming into the season.

Still, if he's released he'll be the top free-agent quarterback on the market—assuming the Baltimore Ravens use the franchise tag on Lamar Jackson, that is—and likely would find a new home quickly.

Given the extensive contract guarantees he has, teams may be hesitant to give up assets to land a player they might simply be able to sign after Feb. 15. So the Raiders aren't operating from a major place of leverage, though that in turn might cost Carr quite a bit of guaranteed cash.