From the archive: Derek Carr nearly quit football for preacher’s life before his rookie season

Editor s note This story was initially published before the season We are sharing it again after Derek Carr stated his retirement from the NFL God sent the Raiders quarterback of all people The Raiders I sent that dude A little dude out of Fresno California I sent him to be the Raiders quarterback so that maybe people would listen to him Who else do I have to send to tell you the truth Derek Carr addressing a gathering during a sermon entitled Holy Fire at Brave Church in San Ramon on July SAN RAMON Something was nagging at Derek Carr and it wasn t as simple as trying to learn the nuances of an NFL offense for the first time Having just arrived at training camp in the second-round pick out of Fresno State was realizing a vision he d been chasing since he d tagged along with his older brother David the former No overall pick of the Houston Texans years earlier Being an NFL quarterback is all Derek Carr ever dreamed about He was a prodigy who was watching contest film and comprehending it by age Although he didn t know it yet the second-round pick was about to be anointed a rookie NFL starter because of that readiness that was all too apparent And just as suddenly as that dream was about to begin the pang in Carr s gut was growing more undeniable As he lifted weights in the makeshift field house behind the Napa Valley Marriott nothing could soothe his soul A guy about to be handed the keys to an NFL offense as a rookie was looking for something more that he didn t entirely understand And how could he In my heart I d never had this feeling where I was so overcome with my thoughts that I was like I can t do anything right now Carr revealed as he sat at a table in the lounge of an East Bay hotel The thought was You need to stop playing football and preach Carr didn t hesitate to speak back at his inner voice I m thinking I ve dreamed of being an NFL quarterback my whole life so chill out But chilling was easier declared than done for the restless rookie Carr was soon knocking at the door of Dennis Allen telling his head coach he was considering walking away from the sport before ever participating in a single padded practice He didn t take it too great obviously Carr disclosed with a chuckle He didn t even know what to say to me Although veteran Matt Schaub had been signed as a free agent Carr s work in the offseason had made it clear he would be ready to play as a rookie Particular years earlier running back Napoleon Kaufman a talented former first-round draft pick retired after six seasons to devote his life to ministry The Raiders signed Charlie Garner and moved on This was different Carr had formed an instant bond with his teammates His arm made Schaub s look like a pop gun Carr was smart mature and more game-ready than anyone had realized The Raiders were convinced they d gotten a franchise quarterback at No overall to go along with linebacker Khalil Mack at No Oakland Raiders quarterback Derek Carr looks to pass during the Oakland Raiders training camp in Napa Calif on Saturday July Jose Carlos Fajardo Bay Area News Group Jose Carlos Fajardo Bay Area News Group Oakland Raiders quarterback Derek Carr throws a pass as he works on drills during the rookie minicamp at the Raiders training facility in Alameda Calif on Friday May Ray Chavez Bay Area News Group With a franchise quarterback and an elite pass rusher in the fold things were looking up Only now a big part of the equation was in question What ensued was an ultra-secret period of damage control Allen speedily sent a text to offensive coordinator Greg Olson urging him to talk with his quarterback While Olson is reluctant to delve into specifics of private conversations this much is known Olson urged Carr not to say anything until he d thought it through Derek commented his parents were on their way to Napa and were going to bring him home They knew of Derek s intention to walk away and were on board Carr s grandfather on his mother s side was a preacher Sheryl Carr had communicated Derek she was sure one of her three sons would be a preacher and now it was on the verge of becoming a reality Then-Raiders general manager Reggie McKenzie along with Olson tried to reason with Carr As a devout Christian himself McKenzie s words carried particular weight He recounted Carr he was walking away from allegedly or million down the road Carr explained he didn t care about the money Football McKenzie and Olson reasoned would give Carr a bigger platform from which to preach and reach people Carr remained non-committal but promised not to tell anyone about his decision until he was sure Only a minimal people knew of Carr s dilemma of conscience his immediate family Allen Olson McKenzie owner Mark Davis and one member of the media relations staff Carr missed a day of meetings while he soul-searched The direction of the franchise as well as the future of those who put themselves out on a limb by drafting this future cornerstone quarterback not a preacher hung in the balance Oley communicated me Go spend time with your family No matter what you decide I love you man I m here for you love that guy Carr revealed Reggie McKenzie was the same way Carr talked it over with his family after they arrived in Napa He prayed on it and ultimately came to a decision It wasn t my time yet Carr stated of walking away from his NFL dream It was cool to know I deduced in something so much Five years later as the second year of Jon Gruden s return unfolds Carr says retirement from football is the furthest thing from his mind He s become increasingly working as a preacher not only at Brave Church in San Ramon but other Christian churches as well But that off-field pursuit ends as soon as training camp begins With his near change of heart as a rookie far in the past he says God and family and football in that order are in proper balance Even if he played well into his s Carr now understands that there is plenty of time for his next career There is no clock winding down It s the first week of July and the a m crowd has filed out of the church auditorium on a sunny day with another ceiling crowd of approximately making its way in to hear Derek Carr deliver a a m sermon entitled Holy Fire Carr already spoke at the first arrangement and waits in a side room with his wife Heather and infant son Deakon as the room begins to fill up once again The atmosphere is relaxed and casual Suits and ties are scarce giving way to Tommy Bahama shirts and cargo shorts There s one man in a No Carr jersey and two teenagers in gym shorts who appear to be headed to a basketball camp after the amenity Seated in the third row are Raiders coach Jon Gruden who is seeing Carr preach for the first time in person and his wife Cindy A five-piece band various wearing backwards ball caps and t-shirts plays soft rock gospel with the crowd clapping in rhythm Samuel Laws the pastor at San Ramon s Brave Church takes the microphone and tells the crowd of upcoming events before introducing the special guest who receives loud applause Carr wearing a short-sleeved collared shirt and jeans takes the microphone He speaks to the gathering rather than at them There is no fire brimstone or solemn warnings about failing to heed God s word Rather than requesting people to silence their cell phones Carr tells the crowd they can reference Google to find scripture relevant to his talk It s a relaxed and honest tour de force Carr is in a large number of options the same kid who drove his mom crazy because he approached strangers in the grocery store with a disarming friendly sincerity His delivery is easy natural and sincere whether you believe in the message he s delivering or not I want to tell you a few stories You guys like stories right Carr revealed And none of them are about football in the present day I m sorry If you want to hear football stories you could leave now or if you re a er fan you can leave Laughter and applause ensue and Carr with a perfect sense of timing reminds them of the obvious I m just kidding he stated Carr s -minute talk is mostly preaching part testimony of his own experiences and yes he does manage to work a little bit of football in now and then Gruden talking in the parking lot after the provision stated he was so impressed with what he heard that he and Cindy will consider making Brave their regular church Derek is what he says he is No he s a man of faith No he s a family man and third is football Gruden commented And he s put forth as much effort as any man could possibly put forth in those three areas Carr got serious about Christianity after a big man on campus period in college where he became a major partier His behavior resulted in a letter from his eventual wife Heather who notified him You re not the man I thought you were His father Rodger mother Sheryl and older brothers David and Darren also had their say Derek decided to begin living the life he had professed to lead and gradually began searching for more You can be on the right path but still realize something is missing Carr disclosed The more Carr spoke before church groups the more he totally began recounting his daily thoughts which come from reading his Bible and applying those lessons to the world around him He easily mixes in life stories from family and football and is unafraid to discuss his own vulnerabilities and insecurities Carr s previous engagement at Brave came in late January shortly after he challenged ESPN host Max Kellerman and co-host Stephen A Smith to a fight in a UFC Octagon Kellerman had stated on the air that Carr didn t look like he wished it He saw it on his phone while working out fired off a retort and instantly regretted it Not the brightest move by me Carr announced I saw instantly it was going to blow up They were talking about it for four days So Carr included his social media mistake with the gathering and recounted them God had already fought the major battles The notion of Carr being soft because of his Christianity provokes a laugh He played threw a broken finger on his throwing hand in had his season ended by a broken fibula that same year In Carr missed just one competition with three fractured transverses processes in his back Anda Chu Bay Area News Group When I put my helmet on I m ultra competitive talking trash Carr declared Tough gritty those are things that have been in me since I was a little kid I have two big brothers I had to be None of that changes what I believe or what goes on in my heart Perspective allows Carr to push aside talk of it being a crucial year for his Raiders career and that he could be playing for his job in Despite plenty of speculation last spring that the association would consider drafting eventual No overall draft pick Kyler Murray and possibly part procedures with Carr instead he goes into this season with his salary for guaranteed Carr realizes when a squad goes - the quarterback takes the heat Even after posting career bests in completion percentage passing yards and yards per attempt and posting a QB rating that trailed only his season that had people talking MVP before he suffered a broken fibula headed into the playoffs Somehow Carr made it through games of while being sacked times behind a patchwork offensive line The Kellermans and Smiths of the world point to moments where he s too timid makes questionable decisions with the ball for a veteran QB throws short of the stake on big downs too often They point to a QBR rating that puts him at among NFL quarterbacks If there is a whisper of discontent among teammates it s been well hidden Kelechi Osemele traded to the New York Jets in recent days called Carr one of the best teammates he ever had Defensive tackle Justin Ellis entered the league with Carr and has watched the progression as closely as anyone He has evolved as a sportsman the longer you re in it the smarter you are Ellis announced He s unfailingly been the guy who he is to this day But now it s his unit When he was young he was a rookie trying to take his role But now he knows he s one of the main guys he walks with it he leads by example Running back Jalen Richard also a Christian believes Carr s faith is a key component to his leadership The positivity and focus on doing things right sets the proper tone and pushes those around him He s a nice model to have around you a family man does everything the right way Richard mentioned When you ve got a guy like that who has so much faith no matter what s going on that picks up your faith and makes you start to search for faith in yourself Is his QB soft Richard laughs He wants us to go hurt somebody but not really hurt em But it s a battle he explained It s a battle when you re fighting for Christ You do battles every day The devil is continuously throwing his little darts at you and you ve got to put on that armor of Christ He s talked about that before putting on the full armor of Christ He s still a battler Ultimately Carr will be judged by the Raiders improvement in the win-loss department With a much better supporting cast on both sides of the ball and having a year of Gruden s system under his belt even a brutal six-week road stretch will be no excuse for anything resembling - Carr understands this on specific level but has too much faith in his coaching staff and teammates to verbalize the possibility of failure Being negative in residents isn t a part of his makeup He plans on being the Raiders quarterback in in Las Vegas There Carr will find a new Christian region while also being involved with Brave Church and making regular visits I believe God has given me talents and abilities to be my very best and work harder than anybody else Carr declared I feel like I m doing it for a higher purpose than just money a higher purpose than fame There s a quote and it s not scripture it s from Steve Prefontaine the runner who announced To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift I ve taken that to heart I believe to give anything less than my best is to sacrifice the gift that God has given me