Getty Former Las Vegas Raiders QB Derek Carr.
In his short time with the New Orleans Saints, Derek Carr is having quite an impact on the team. On June 15, the team announced that they have signed former Las Vegas Raiders third-round pick Lynn Bowden.
With the Bowden signing, the Saints have now signed five former Raiders who played with Carr.
Tight end Foster Moreau, safety Johnathan Abram and wide receiver Bryan Edwards were also signed by New Orleans this offseason. That’s not to mention former Raiders head coach Dennis Allen is the current Saints head coach, and the team recently brought in Jon Gruden as a consultant. The only aforementioned player that Allen coached previously was Carr when he was a rookie in 2014. The coach only lasted four games with the quarterback as he was fired following a winless start.
Lynn Bowden Never Played a Snap for the Las Vegas Raiders
Bowden was a member of the Raiders in 2020 when the team selected him as a third-round pick. However, he never ended up playing a snap for the team. Bowden was technically a wide receiver at Kentucky but was moved to quarterback as a junior. He only threw 74 passes in 13 games as the team used him more as a runner. During his junior season, he rushed for 1,468 yards. The Raiders saw that and believed they could transition him to running back.
Las Vegas decided to trade Bowden to the Miami Dolphins for a fourth-round pick prior to the start of the 2020 season. General manager at the time Mike Mayock admitted that it was a mistake trying to transition him from wide receiver to running back. He decided to cut his losses early.
“He was not able to play today at the level expected and because of that, we felt like we had to make a move,” Mayock said of Bowden during a June 6, 2020, press conference. “And, again, it’s 100% on me.”
Since getting traded by the Raiders, Bowden saw his most significant playing time with the Dolphins. He played in 10 games and had 28 catches for 211 yards. He spent some time with the New England Patriots last season where he played in one game but didn’t record any stats.
Derek Carr Impressed With Alvin Kamara
After nine years with the Raiders, Carr has moved on and is embracing his new home. He’s going to have some dynamic pieces to work with on offense. One of the players he’s excited to work with is Alvin Kamara. The five-time Pro Bowler is already impressing Carr throughout organized team activities.
“I just absolutely love him. Great teammate, great energy about him, and very explosive. He’s so smooth on film, you really just don’t know how good he is — obviously you see the film, but then when you get in person, he ran a couple routes where I looked at Jake today like, ‘That’s not normal,’” Carr said during his June 13 media availability. “Being around him just for a little bit in the building, people don’t know how smart he is at football, he knows what to see, he knows what route to run, he knows how to use his help, that combined with his athletic ability, you see why he’s had that production.”
Unless Bowden were to finally live up to the hype he was given by Gruden & Mayock, this is an insignificant signing in my opinion. His much traveled career indicates just how well he’s done so far in his career.