With the first pick in the 2014 NFL Draft the Houston Texans select D. Carr, Quarterback Fresno State. In an instant Texans fans would boo the selection and immediately video of David Carr would appear on our televisions, even if the player being drafted is David’s younger brother Derek Carr. If you think it wouldn’t happen just look at some reactions already to Derek Carr by draft writers, fans immediately consider him a bust because his brother was.
As I profiled in my “Something You Must Know About Derek Carr," Derek has been living under his brother’s shadow for a while. The family followed him to Houston, where Derek played football for three years in high school before they moved back to California. After dominating in his senior season, Carr followed in his brother’s footsteps and signed with the Fresno State Bulldogs. Still dealing with being “David’s little brother”, Carr took over as the Bulldogs’ starting quarterback in 2011 and hasn’t looked back since.
One issue that I have with people comparing Derek Carr to his brother is the fact that people assume because David Carr was a bust, Derek Carr will be too, as if it runs in the family genes. But this doesn’t account for some of the reasons why David Carr was a bust, and plenty of it has to do with the circumstances that surrounded him as a member of the Houston Texans.
Carr was drafted by an expansion team, a franchise that was built with bottom of the barrel talent. In his first season Carr helped lead the Texans to a four-win season, and more improvement in the following two years winning five games in 2003 and seven games in 2004.
He didn’t put up big numbers but his name found the record books, Carr was sacked a whooping 76 times in 2002 and 49 times in 2004. 150 sacks in just his first three seasons, and this number doesn’t even include big hits he took when he was able to throw the ball away or when he picked up positive yards.
Carr had confidence and poise coming out of Fresno State, a fire burned inside him and there was plenty of energy and desire to go with it.
But after three seasons of just getting pounded into the turf, during a time when the NFL didn’t protect quarterbacks like they do now, it was all gone. The confidence, the fire and energy had all been beaten out of him, he was no longer the player everyone loved when he entered the draft.
Carr made plenty of mistakes, he didn’t make enough adjustments to make it to the NFL, but even if he did it probably wouldn’t have mattered.
He landed in a situation where he was bound to fail, where anyone would have failed, and sure enough he did.
It’s been over a decade since the Houston Texans drafted David Carr; he spent time in Carolina and even won a Super Bowl as a backup quarterback with the New York Giants. The NFL has changed as well since Carr took the 76 sacks in 2002, the “concussion era” has helped protect players, and especially quarterbacks from taking the vicious hits that Carr took. As Derek Carr prepares for the 2014 NFL Draft with plenty of confidence heading into the same Senior Bowl his older brother shined at, he will soon join an era in the NFL wear quarterbacks are now seen as overprotected.
Derek Carr will arrive at the Senior Bowl with a much cleaner throwing motion than his brother had, something that will benefit him at the next level.
He also will have something his brother did not, someone to give him guidance about the life of an NFL quarterback and all of the ups and downs that go along with it.
This story also comes full circle in a way, and history has the chance to repeat itself if Louisville quarterback Teddy Bridgewater returns for his senior season.
The Texans again have the first overall pick and are in need of a franchise quarterback, but this time around the situation is far more welcoming for a rookie quarterback. If the Texans draft Derek Carr, he will walk into an offense with a much better supporting cast.
Wide receiver Andre Johnson is still playing near a Pro Bowl-caliber level and the team spent an early pick last year on wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins. He will have at least one good running back in Arian Foster and potentially another if the Texans are able to bring back Ben Tate. But most importantly is the offensive line, while they may not be amongst the elite in the NFL, they have given up just 34 sacks this year which is right in the middle of the pack. The Texans are far from a perfect team but they are very well equipped to take in a rookie quarterback and letting him take over as the future of the franchise.
Yes, there are plenty of similarities between Derek and David Carr that go beyond the two players both being brothers. They both attended Fresno State and played at a very high level, setting school records and putting up video game like numbers.
Both players were praised for their arm strength and deep accuracy coming out of the draft, while both also drew praise for their sneaky athleticism and ability to get away from pressure and throw on the run. Both quarterbacks also faced questions about the “gunslinger” label and forcing too many throws because of confidence they can fit it into the tightest windows. But David Carr’s failure to live up to expectations in the NFL and ultimately earning the “bust” label happened because of some of his own problems but also issues outside of his own control.
But determining the fate of Derek Carr’s NFL career entirely off his brother is preposterous. When you watch Derek Carr, don’t look at the name on the back of his jersey. He is not his brother; he is a great quarterback prospect with great tools and the chance to be a star in the NFL. He wears the last name “Carr” on the back of his jersey proudly, but let him create his own story and determine his own success.