Carr and Mariota: Think Long-Term, Don’t Rush Them Back
Well for all you Raiders and Titans fans out there, now may be time to hit the panic button. Your franchise quarterbacks are showing early signs of frailty and, in an awkward coincidence, have found themselves injured on the same day…twice.
It all began on December 24, 2017, when the Oakland and Tennessee both lost their starting signal callers to broken legs, immediately sticking a knife in each squad’s playoff hopes. Carr was replaced by rookie Connor Cook and the Raiders managed to hold on to a Wild Card spot, but were quickly eliminated by the Houston Texans. Tennessee replaced Mariota with Matt Cassel and failed to qualify for the playoffs after losing the AFC South on a tiebreaker with that same Texans team.
After successfully rehabbing in the offseason, both Carr and Mariota returned at full strength in 2017, deemed as the respective favorites of their divisions and seemed to be on pace to do so through the first three weeks. The Titans opened the year 2–1 with impressive wins over the stingy defenses of the Jacksonville Jaguars and Seattle Seahawks. Mariota’s dual-threat ability had the Titans averaging over 28 points in their first three contests. The Raiders also managed a 2–1 start, with dominating offensive performances against Tennessee and the New York Jets before dropping a primetime game to the Washington Redskins. Carr and the Raiders offense were posting 27 points per game and were poised to be a viable threat in the AFC.
And just as football giveth, football taketh away. Both the Raiders and Titans watched helplessly as the idea of another playoff run momentarily dwindled away when both quarterbacks went down with injuries in their Week Four losses. Mariota suffered a hamstring injury and dropped their Week Four matchup with the Houston Texans by a score of 57–14. Oakland saw Carr sustain a back injury and fell at the hands of the Denver Broncos by a tilt of 16–10.
After receiving sufficient medical testing, neither were deemed to have a serious, season-ending injury. However, we now have the early evidence to label both Carr and Mariota injury-prone, a moniker not easy to shake.
A hamstring injury wouldn’t be a major red flag for most quarterbacks, but in the case of Mariota, it severely hampers his dual-threat ability. The former Oregon star had to leave the game after running for a two-yard touchdown in the second quarter of their Week Four loss. Hamstring injuries are known to linger and can take a substantial amount of time to fully recover. If the Titans feel the pressure to rush Mariota back onto the field, we could see this develop into a reoccurring issue for the former second-overall pick in the 2015 draft. Unless Mariota is planning on transitioning into a full time pocket passer, then it would be in his best interest to protect his lower body at all costs.
Just as we saw with Russell Wilson of the Seattle Seahawks, lingering leg injruies can significantly hamper the ability to escape the pocket, throw on the run, improvise, and extend plays. As a result, Wilson has seen a downtick on his overall success in the past two seasons. Robert Griffin III, another former second-overall pick with dual-threat ability, saw his career spiral downward after being rushed back from injury during his impressive rookie season. The Titans would be wise to heed the cautionary tale of players like Wilson and Griffin if they want their franchise quarterback have a long and prosperous career.
Just as the Titans should do, the Raiders should err on the side of caution when it comes to Carr’s injury. Carr sustained a back injury when he was sacked by Adam Gotsis in the third quarter of the Raiders-Broncos game from Week Four. An MRI and CT scan revealed the diagnosis of a back fracture, sidelining Carr for 2–6 weeks.
It was an eerily reminiscent scene to the fracture Tony Romo suffered, ultimately leading to his retirement. Romo, who happened to be doing the color commentating of the game, immediately shared his concern for Carr and his long-term health. While the injury, a transverse process fracture, is not a risk to Carr’s spinal health, the biggest concern will be tolerating pain.
While most expected Carr to be sidelined closer to the recommended six weeks after the initial injury report, the former second-rounder returned to practice on October 5. The fact of the matter is that this is another scenario where there should not be a rush to get Carr back on the field. Risking a long-term health issue is simply not worth the risk in a player that can perform at such a high level under center. The Raiders have a solid roster, complete with a strong running game and physical defense, so the emphasis should be on relying on the rest of their team to carry the load while their quarterback recovers. Back injuries derailed Tony Romo’s career. It would be a shame to see Derek Carr suffer a similar fate.
If both franchises value the long-term health and success of their young quarterbacks, they will both choose to rest their signal callers and and ensure they are fully healthy before placing them back onto the field.
