It appears Derek Carr will continue to be the franchise quarterback of the Las Vegas Raiders — presumably — as they prepare for a new regime led by head coach Josh McDaniels and general manager David Ziegler, but the competition for the backup role behind the veteran QB is still up for grabs. To that end, the Raiders have reportedly agreed to terms with Nick Mullens, per NFL Network, to set up what should be an interesting head-to-head in training camp.
The team also recently added Garrett Gilbert to the team in free agency, and both Gilbert and Mullens have had their share of well-traveled NFL careers. Mullens, 27, is a former undrafted grab by the San Francisco 49ers who played the entirety of his rookie contract in the Bay Area before joining the Philadelphia Eagles in 2021, but that was a short and fruitless stay that saw him never activated to a game.
He’d then head to the Cleveland Browns to finish out last season, and now heads to Vegas.
Gilbert, 30, is much more seasoned — having initially entered the league as a sixth-round pick of the St. Louis/Los Angeles Rams in 2014, having spent time on a total of 11 different teams (between multiple leagues), including a notable stint with the Dallas Cowboys in 2020. Still trying to find some turf to truly dig his heels into, he’ll have to beat out Mullens to help his case with the Raiders.
And while this is all set to be sorted on the field later this summer, Carr and the Raiders hope to get a new deal done before the temperature increases outside … and inside … of the building. This feels like a formality at the moment, but with how wild, crazy and unexpected things have gone around the league this NFL offseason, the Raiders should leave nothing to chance.
