Latest on Derek Carr, NFL Players Give Back, Antonio Brown Says He Has CTE, and Other NFL Bullets
Derek Carr took the opportunity to poke fun at himself on Thursday night at the Pro Bowl Games Skill Challenge. After a solid performance in the precision passing challenge, ESPN’s Ryan Clark asked Carr if he had ever been that hot throwing a football in Las Vegas; “not that hot,” Carr said with a smile. “It’s probably why I’m going somewhere else.” The Raiders quarterback will indeed be going somewhere else, and he was granted permission to speak to other teams by the Raiders this weekend.
- The Raiders have given Carr permission to speak with other teams interested in trading for him “that have also agreed to compensation with Las Vegas.”
- Some read that as there were teams that Carr has spoken to that have already agreed to compensation for Carr. I take it as, the Raiders simply said, hey, makes some calls and if we like what we hear, we’ll talk.
- But honestly, I don’t think this means much at all. Allowing Carr to speak with other teams always seemed like a smart play. The Raiders have 11 days to trade Carr or be on the hook for his 2023 and 2024 salary. They could use all the help they can get trying to do so.
- But I’m not trading anything for Carr if I’m another team. A team trading for Carr would owe him $32.9 million in 2022, $41.9 million in 2023, and $41.2 million in 2023, with a $100,000 workout bonus included each season, according to ESPN’s Field Yates. Carr said on Thursday at the Skills Challenge that he’s not extending the February 15 deadline for the Raiders. So, they’ll cut him on the 15th, making him a free agent on the 16th. At which point, any team can sign him to a new contract.
- On Friday, the NFL gave back to the Southern Nevada community. Pro Bowlers such as Roquan Smith, Cameron Jordan, Geno Smith, Elgton Jenkins, Terry McLaurin, Bradley Chubb, Tress Way, and Trey Hendrickson came to the Boys and Girls Club of Las Vegas in Henderson to spend an afternoon with the kids.
- The players participated in improvement projects like painting the gymnasium and planting a new flower bed in the garden. In addition, they spent time running the kids through obstacle courses, having dance-offs, eating lunch, and signing autographs.
- Seeing the ear-to-ear smiles on the kids as they hung out with some of their favorite NFL players was really cool. Also, seeing the players in a relaxed environment was cool and a nice change of pace. At one point, I came across a conversation between Geno Smith and Cam Jordan as the two discussed Jordan’s two-sack performance against Smith and the Seahawks in October.
- Bears mascot Staley Da Bear was on hand and dominated the mascot vs. cheerleader dance-off.
- So, the first thing I saw on Twitter this morning was a screen grab of an Instagram video of Antonio Brown claiming that James Harrison is to blame for “my CTE.”
- First, we know that CTE can only be diagnosed post-mortem, so we don’t know that Brown’s erratic and self-destructive behavior in recent years stems from CTE. It can be implied. However, that’s about it. Second, AB has become a punch line on social media, but this is truly sad. This guy is destroying his life in front of our eyes. I feel bad for him.
- I hope he gets the help he needs, and I don’t have much else to say that hasn’t already been said about Brown.
- Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins saw the rumors on Friday:
- While the “reports” were taken largely out of context by an aggregator, there is a possibility that the Bengals will land on this route. If that’s the case, Luis believes that the Bears should have some interest in Higgins.
- I put together a primer on the QB carousel that will begin to spin very soon:
- The Colts head coach search continues to drag on:
- The Miami Dolphins made Vic Fangio the highest paid coordinator in the NFL:
- The Bulls are trying to add!?
