Derek Carr’s biggest regret wasn’t retiring last year or walking away from $30 million guaranteed. He made that decision because of his injuries – a torn labrum and damaged rotator cuff in his throwing shoulder that needed surgery and would have sidelined him for the rest of the season. So, he retired rather than sit on the IR, collecting the check. While Carr dominated headlines with his decision last year, there’s a different regret that he will carry all his life.

“When we first got there, I was so focused on the football that I didn’t really get to the community aspect – like I did with the Raiders – that first 6 months,” Carr revealed in a late-April edition of the podcast. “That’s one thing I look back [on], man, I wish I did that sooner. We did some community things. We helped bless a lot of families and people out there, and it was beautiful.”

Carr played for the Oakland/Las Vegas Raiders from 2014 through 2022, and gave back to the community with every chance he had. He launched DC4KIDS in 2016 when his newborn son, Dallas, spent 23 days in the NICU at Valley Children’s Hospital after multiple surgeries for a life-threatening intestinal condition in 2013. Since then, community work has been a part of his job.

Carr has organized annual fundraisers, personally matched $75,000 in donations towards a hospital playground, and even represented Valley Children’s through the NFL’s My Cause, My Cleats campaign across multiple seasons.

Then, in May 2023, after joining the New Orleans Saints, Derrek and his brother David donated $250,000 to Valley Children’s Healthcare, recommitting to DC4KIDS. He was locked into football with New Orleans, trying to earn his starting role at the time, and ultimately couldn’t “get to the community aspect.” New Orleans did get its share, but it just came a bit later.

Carr started small. In early 2024, he hosted a “Barbershop Hangout” for the young kids in the community, signing autographs, spreading smiles, and giving life advice to them. In December, he showed up for patients from the Ochsner MD Anderson Cancer Center along with his teammate Taysom Hill.

That same December, Carr and his wife hosted a Salvation Army holiday lunch that earned him the Week 17 NFLPA Community MVP honor. That’s the pivot he’s now admitting to on Crosby’s podcast. The Saints chapter did have community moments; it just lacked the early rhythm from his Raiders days.

But after 11 seasons across two franchises, which city has left the biggest impression on Derek Carr? No matter how many times Carr comes across this question, his answer always turns to Silver and Black.

A Raider for life

Carr spent nine seasons with the Raiders and left as the franchise’s all-time leader in passing yards (35,222). But the bond he describes with the team and the fanbase has nothing to do with that number.

“You know, the Raiders fans, no matter what we went through; sure, they’d get upset when we lost or if Maxx missed a tackle or if I threw a pick of whatever,” Carr said on the podcast. “Of course, they get mad. They’re fans, right? They’re going to be pissed. They spent their hard-earned money to buy your jersey and to go to your games. … And I understand that. But one thing about them is they’ll love you forever if you show that you’ll lay your body on the line.”

And Carr showed that multiple times. In Week 12 of the 2016 season, he injured his pinkie on the throwing hand, came back with a black glove, and led a fourth-quarter comeback to win 35-32. In 2017, he went out with a back fracture against the Broncos and only missed one week. That is what endeared Carr to the fanbase, week after week, even when the team struggled.

By 2023, a contract dispute, declining numbers, and bad blood with the franchise caused Carr to part ways with the Raiders. New Orleans saw potential and handed him a four-year, $150 million deal. But that didn’t mean Carr was okay leaving the team he loved.

“It was hard because, I mean, I’m a Raider,” Carr admitted. “I put that [Saints] jersey on for the first time, like, ‘this gold should be silver,’ you know. And I think a lot of us felt that way.”

So the jersey changed, but the identity did not. Derek Carr retired without winning a Super Bowl, but the ring never drove him; the identity he created with the Raiders, and the love he got for it in return, was the whole point. That’s why – as he notes himself – he’s still waiting for them to win a Super Bowl.

“Because of the support and the loyalty from the fans, all I want to do is see the Raiders win a Super Bowl. That’s all I want to do,” Carr said. “And so, I don’t care if I’m there or if I’m not there. I just want to see them win, man, cause you bleed silver and black for life once you’re a part of it and that invested.”