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Las Vegas Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels said he didn’t feel the need to warn starter Derek Carr before Colin Kaepernick’s training.
After leading the 34-year-old free agent quarterback to a training session Wednesday that impressed the Raiders, the coach stressed that the team still belongs to Carr.
“I think Derek is pretty comfortable with where he is,” McDaniels told reporters Thursday. “I think he knows who he is to us and I know he knows how I feel about him, how we feel about him. I don’t think that’s really big for Derek right now.”
Las Vegas Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels speaks at a press conference at the NFL football team’s training facility on Thursday, May 26, 2022 in Henderson, Nevada, AP Photo / John Locher)
Carr, 31, signed a three-year, $ 121.5 million extension this year, and is still established as the team’s starting quarterback. The Raiders were reportedly looking to see if Kaepernick would fit well in a quarterback room that also includes Jarrett Stidham and Nick Mullens.
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“I think he knows that this is his football team, that he is working like this on the field, that he is leading the way we want him to lead and that he is doing all the right things,” McDaniels added. “I can’t ask for more from Derek Carr and I’m very happy with what he’s doing so far.”
After Jon Gruden resigned as coach of the Raiders in the middle of last season, Carr still managed to take the team to the playoffs in one of the toughest divisions in the NFL.
Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Derek Carr is celebrating the release of the ball for a first sinking in the second half of an NFL football game against the Dallas Cowboys in Arlington, Texas on Thursday, November 25, 2021. (AP Photo / Michael Ainsworth)
The three-time Pro Bowler had career highs in both passing yards (4,804) and interceptions (14) in 17 games last season. He also threw 23 touchdowns and led the team to a 10-7 record before losing to eventual AFC Cincinnati Bengals champion in the Wild Card round.
McDaniels declined to say Thursday whether the team would sign Kaepernick, who last played in the NFL in 2016, the same year he began kneeling during the national anthem in protest of racial injustice.
COLIN KAEPERNICK IMPRESSES DURING TRAINING WITH LAS VEGAS RAIDERS: REPORTS
The coach said during his press conference that he would not answer questions about players who are not currently on the team.
“We’ve brought in tons of people to do workouts,” McDaniels said. “From the first day we said we would look at every opportunity, and he’s not the first player we looked at or the last.”
“So there will be a lot of people coming in and out of this building and they will have a chance to make an impression,” the coach added. “The assessments we do are a bit private to us and if we make the decision to add someone to the team, we will.”
Kaepernick stated in a podcast interview last month that he “absolutely” wants to play in the league again and was even willing to return to the league as a reserve quarterback if that helps his chances of returning.
FILE – San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick (7) is looking for a receiver during the second quarter of the NFC NFC football game against the Green Bay Packers in San Francisco on January 12, 2013. (AP Photo / Tony Avelar, File)
Although Carr did not speak on Thursday, other players, including defender Maxx Crosby, were asked about the team that led Kaepernick to a training session.
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“Honestly, I don’t know much about that,” Crosby told reporters. “I’m worried about the guys being here right now, so that’s really all I have about it.”