Derek Carr blames end of his tenure on Raiders making his wife cry

Derek Carr still remembers the exact moment he came to the realization that his Las Vegas Raiders career was over.

Following his benching after Week 15 of the 2022 regular season, Carr’s wife, Heather, was brought to tears. That, Carr recently told Anthony Galaviz of The Fresno Bee, was the proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back.

“Once they made my wife cry, that was pretty much over,” Carr said. “Once they made her cry, that was out. But the love for my teammates is what probably would have made me do it. But the way it worked out and the timing of things, I was just … it was time for me to move on. But who knows? You never know what will happen.”

Carr, 32, inked a four-year, $150 million contract ($60 million fully guaranteed) with the Saints this offseason following his release from the Raiders. Carr, a second-round selection in the 2014 NFL Draft out of Fresno State, ended his time with Las Vegas as the franchise’s all-time leading passer.

In nine seasons, Carr threw for 35,222 yards with 217 touchdowns and 99 interceptions on 64.6% passing. In 15 games this season, he threw for 3,522 with 24 touchdowns and 14 interceptions on 60.8% passing.

Derek Carr goes off on Las Vegas Raiders

Carr said the benching made him “very upset.”

“I was, for lack of a better term, I was very upset; I was mad,” Carr said. “You spend nine years in a place, you have all the records and you can play at a high level and for something to get in the way, whether it was whatever reason, money related or whatever, injury-related, I would have said I don’t even want the money, just to play two more times in front of our fans. I didn’t get that opportunity. So, it definitely lit a fire inside me to keep going.”

Carr admitted, however, that had he won more games in Las Vegas, he’d likely be wearing black and silver in 2023.

“If you win more games and you keep being productive, you stay there forever,” Carr said. “But we didn’t win enough games and that’s the kind of stuff that happens with all the turnover of coaches; with all the different things. Eventually, the last guy in the room is usually going to be out at some point. And that’s really what happened.

“I’ve survived about 20 coaches, and that’s how it goes, and it is what it is.”