Alliance... » About negative 47 percent if that’s possible

Raiders quarterback Derek Carr Tahir Whitehead Jersey , after an offseason that featured the coach working out a pair of incoming rookies and the General Manager explaining in matter-of-fact terms the constant search for an upgrade at every position, including quarterback, now claims he never had any concern that he’d be supplanted.And he has developed a catch phrase for characterizing his level of concern.“” Carr told Adam Schein of SiriusXM Mad Dog Radio, one day after Carr used the “negative 47 percent” line when talking to reporters. “I guess it doesn’t happen everywhere and people are shocked by it. But the General Manager, the head coach, and the quarterback are all on the same page all the time, whether it’s good news or bad news. And, that’s how we operate here. Throw our owner into that. We are all on the same page, literally all the time. And so, we talked right when the season ended, we talked a couple weeks after that, obviously the right way, and going about it Tank Carradine Jersey , and all that. We knew exactly what was going on, why some things were happening and all these kind of things. So to say negative 47 percent might even be an understatement.”Of course, if Carr were “negative 47 percent” concerned about his status, he likely wouldn’t have posted a not-so-cryptic “I’m watching you” photo after word emerged of the Murray and Haskins workouts.Even though the Raiders didn’t draft a quarterback last month, this doesn’t mean Carr should have been unconcerned. He definitely should have been concerned, and moving forward he absolutely should be.“Let’s just get through this year first and then we’ll play that game again and I’ll probably have some more fun with it, but I’m not going anywhere,” Carr said Tuesday. “This is my team and it will be for the next however long I want to play.”That’s a bizarre, presumptuous statement. Time and again, franchise quarterbacks have had to end their careers elsewhere. From Brett Favre and Peyton Manning, to John Unitas and Joe Namath. Current franchise quarterbacks like Aaron Rodgers accept that it could happen, and Tom Brady has used fear of inevitably being cut by the Patriots as motivation throughout his career.Starting in 2020, Carr’s contract becomes a year-to-year proposition for the Raiders, who can dump him with no financial cost and minimal cap consequence. He hardly has the lifetime arrangement he thinks he has Rashaan Melvin Jersey , and he has plenty to do to earn it. Especially in light of the reality that, if the Antonio Brown trade doesn’t work out with Brown generating big numbers in the Oakland offense, neither Brown nor coach Jon Gruden will get the blame for it.Carr will. We have plenty of film on Johnathan Abram that shows he takes good angles and packs a load when he gets to the ball carrier. But what makes a great NFL player is a lot more than that. It’s those..." Raiders Draft 2019Raiders rookie safety Johnathan Abram ‘sounds like a veteran’ on practice fieldNew,21commentsPDTWe have plenty of film on Johnathan Abram that shows he takes good angles and packs a load when he gets to the ball carrier. But what makes a great NFL player is a lot more than that. It’s those intangible things. The things that may not show up on film, but show up in the play of the defense.Things like smarts, instincts, and leadership. With just 8 OTA practices under their belts, the Raiders pick at 27 overall has already showed he has those intangibles.“He’s smart. He’s real smart,” Defensive Coordinator Paul Guenther said of Abram. “From a rookie player with all the stuff the safeties have to know, he’s on top of it each and every day.”Middle linebackers get dubbed the quarterback of the defense, but the safeties must line up the secondary as well, which mean they must be vocal. That’s not always easy for a rookie to do as they are still feeling their way around and it can be tough to try tell veterans what to do. Apparently Abram isn’t having those issues.“As I stand in the back of the defense and I hear him communicate, he doesn’t sound like a rookie player, he sounds like a veteran player out there Daryl Worley Jersey , so that’s encouraging,” Guenther continued.Through most of OTA’s, Abram has taken the field with the second team. Tuesday according to at least one observer, he saw some time with the first team alongside Karl Joseph, with Erik Harris playing second team.Few have filled that role better than Charles Woodson did for three years until his retirement after the 2015 season. Not only is Abram sporting Woodson’s number, he seems to be channeling that swagger. The Raiders gave him a tough number and legacy to follow. “Big expectations, big shoes to fill, that’s what I see,” said Guenther.Abram doesn’t suffer for confidence. Just ask 8-year veteran linebacker Tahir Whitehead. He came to the Raiders prior to last season and played nearly ever snap on defense. Abram had words for him too.“I’m always going back and forth with him, he likes to talk a lot,” Whitehead said of Abram. “That’s my guy. I love it. Young guy going in there, you’re coming in and you’re showing how confident you are. I love that because we can build off of that. That’s what we need, we need more guys that are confident in their skillset and then you’re bringing that to the team. That’s going to take us a long way.”The next open media availability is mandatory minicamp June 11-13. We’ll see at that time if Abram sees more first team work. The Raiders are clearly envisioning him as a starter sooner rather than later.Follow @LeviDamien