2013 Record: 4-12
Notable Losses: Terrelle Pryor, Jacoby Ford, Rashad Jennings, Jared Veldheer, Lamarr Houston, Mike Jenkins
Notable Gains: Justin Tuck, Lamarr Woodley, Antonio Smith, James Jones, Tarell Brown, Carlos Rogers, Donald Penn, Matt Schaub, Maurice Jones-Drew, Kevin Boothe, Austin Howard
Draft Class: Khalil Mack, Derek Carr,Gabe Jackson,Justin Ellis, Keith McGill, Travis Carrie, Shelby Harris, Johnathan Dowling
The Facts: Oakland let Jared Veldheer and Lamarr Houston go despite having enough money to keep them both and failed to sign Brandon Albert or Eugene Monroe, despite having enough money to do so. The Raiders did at least acquire Donald Penn and some serviceable veterans to help them. Unless Matt Schaub has a Rex Gannon-esque career revival, he's little more than a place-holder for Derek Carr. The running game is sketchy and that's putting it nicely. Maurice Jones-Drew is 29 and Darren McFadden is injury prone, and Latavius Murray is surrounded by question marks after missing all of his rookie season. But at least Marcel Reese is good! Believe it or not I actually liked the Raiders past two drafts, especially this one. I think that Khalil Mack has a fighting chance at DPOY and that Derek Carr, if given the right protection can be a quality NFL QB in the future. But the Raiders are not a good team right now and they certainly aren't in a good position right now. The Raiders have the hardest schedule in the NFL, one that has them going up against the AFC West, NFC West (at CenturyLink and the Edward Jones Dome), AFC East (at Gillette Stadium, Metlife, and with a "home game" in London).
Predicted Record: 3-13; Wins against Buffalo, Cleveland, and Houston
Conclusion: Derek Carr shouldn't worry about playing this year. The Raiders have Matt McGloin and Matt Schaub, both of which have NFL wins on their resumes, which should put both of them above him on the depth chart. He also won't have to worry about who is protecting his blindside, who he will be handing off to, and who he has to throw to, as the Raiders should be in prime drafting position to address those needs.