Raiders Expect Extension Talks With Derek Carr To Pick Up After Draft

According to Raiders GM Reggie McKenzie, serious extension talks with QB Derek Carr are likely to pick up after this year’s draft.

“He knows what we’re trying to do in free agency, and he’s never saying, ‘I need to know now. It’s not like that,” McKenzie said, via CSNBayArea.com. “More likely, the serious talks will happen after the draft. The communication has been ongoing, just talking about the philosophy of a contract and the thought process around it. Hopefully when the serious talks start going, then it’s going to be easier.”

McKenzie added that they also plan to discuss new deals for OLB Khalil Mack and G Gabe Jackson this offseason.

“We’re going to try and get our quarterback signed. We want to get Khalil signed , and at the same time we’re trying to sign Gabe,” McKenzie said. “You have to allot some money for those guys. With that being said, we didn’t have the opportunity to go after guys like we did last year, at those numbers.”

Addressing Carr first makes sense for a number of reasons including the fact that this will be a massive contract and because they can pick up Mack’s fifth-year option and buy themselves some time.

If the Raiders can’t reach an agreement on a long-term deal with Carr, there’s no question he’ll be franchised in 2018, as he’s proven to be among the best young quarterbacks in the game.

For what it’s worth, some have mentioned that Carr could be in line for a similar deal to the one signed by Colts QB Andrew Luck, who received a six-year, $139.125 million contract with $87 million guaranteed.

Carr, 26, is a former second-round pick of the Raiders back in 2014. He will be entering the final year of his four-year, $5,371,802 contract and stands to make a base salary of $977,519 for the 2017 season.

It’s worth mentioning that Carr suffered a season-ending fibula fracture and has already undergone surgery.

In 2016, Carr had thrown for 3,933yards while completing 63.7 percent of his passes to go along with 28 touchdowns and six interceptions.

We’ll have more regarding a long-term extension for Carr as the news is available.