Derek Carr Injury Scare Proves How Crucial QB Is to Raiders' Success

A portion of Oakland Raiders fans wanted to see quarterback Matt McGloin take regular-season snaps with the first-team offense. Be careful what you wish for because your wish may come true.

Starting quarterback Derek Carr left the game and never returned with an injury to his throwing hand Sunday. McGloin took center stage with the team down 10-0 against the Cincinnati Bengals.

An opportunity to show his skills as a starting regular-season quarterback presented itself with Carr immediately going into the locker room, per CSNCalifornia.com writer Scott Bair:

McGloin's preseason performances provided hope that he'd be fit to lead the offense in Carr's absence—and potentially outperform the starter.

Neither scenario happened Sunday.

Matt McGloin Squanders Opportunity

Fresh out of the locker room after halftime, McGloin threw an interception that resembled a punt falling into Bengals safety Reggie Nelson’s cradled arms.

In reference to the interception, Asher Mathews of TFDS Sports made a comparison between Carr and McGloin on Twitter: "McGloin goes vertically much more often than Carr. That results in big plays for #Raiders sometimes. Other times, INTs like that bad pass."

McGloin unnecessarily forced the pass with poor ball placement. He followed with a conservative drive, dinking and dunking down the field to no avail, as SFBay.ca writer Jason Leskiw noted:

The subsequent drive resulted in a fumble, and Cincinnati converted the turnover into a field goal.

At this point, the Bengals led the Raiders 33-0.

When the offense finally started to click with McGloin at the helm, the contest resembled a preseason game. The Bengals set up for a victory in the prevent defense, allowing yards underneath in garbage time.

McGloin once again excelled when the circumstances lacked meaning. He established a rhythm with wide receiver Michael Crabtree and H-back Marcel Reece.

The Raiders avoided the shutout but couldn’t shake the shame of laying an egg in front of their fans. For McGloin, his preseason performance became an afterthought.

Faulty Play-Calling or Poor Decision-Making?

Offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave didn’t provide any favors for either quarterback. From the first drive, the play-calling forced passes to wide receiver Amari Cooper. Wide receivers not named Cooper or Crabtree didn’t warrant many targets, with the exception of Seth Roberts and his butterfingers.

Musgrave cannot tell Carr or McGloin whom to throw to, but these receivers projected as a versatile group capable of playing different positions. Why not design plays that feature a different receiver to give the defense a variety of looks and weapons to cover?

The Bay Area News Group's Marcus Thompson shared some of those thoughts via Twitter:

Carr targeted Cooper early, barely looked to Crabtree and played conservatively in a fashion similar to the preseason. Those vanilla game plans shouldn’t find their way into the regular-season playbook—not with all the weapons available.

The Raiders starting quarterback shouldn't escape speculation on his poor decision-making, either. He struggled to cycle through his reads in exhibition contests, but those were just practice, right? There was no way he was going to play this way in games that count.

Well, he didn’t show a change in his approach Sunday.

Carr threw 12 passes—five of them to Cooper, four of them to running back Latavius Murray. Ball distribution helps spread out the defense and creates space for hot routes.

The second-year quarterback has yet to master the ability to scan the field for his third or fourth option and trust his arm. Targeting two receivers 75 percent of the time won’t get the job done in the NFL against sophisticated defenses designed by coaches who watch hours of film.

Limited Options

Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images

The Raiders decided to release quarterback Christian Ponder and signed Garrett Gilbert to the practice squad.

If Carr is unable to compete for a couple of weeks, the Raiders must stick with McGloin. Two active quarterbacks and a second-year player who’s never thrown an NFL pass don't give Oakland much wiggle room, barring a veteran signing.

Head coach Jack Del Rio doesn’t have much information on Carr’s hand, aside from negative X-rays, which he confirmed in his postgame press conference. Carr standing on the sidelines puts the Raiders in a vulnerable situation, forcing the team to ride the erratic waves with McGloin at the helm.

McGloin will likely take some first-team practice snaps, but it’s imperative that he establishes a rapport with different receivers to optimize the offense.

Oakland must find a middle ground with whoever starts in Week 2 against the Baltimore Ravens. The quarterback cannot be stiff and overly conservative or utterly reckless against an opportunistic Ravens defense.

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Week 1 statistics and play-by-play provided by NFL.com.