Week 1 NFL FanDuel Salary Movers
Derek Carr, QB, Oakland Raiders
Week 1 2017 Salary: $8,300
Week 1 2018 Salary: $6,600
A price tag of $8,300 in Week 1 last year did not seem that outlandish for Derek Carr at the time. He had just thrown for 3,933 yards and 28 touchdowns to just 6 interceptions the year before, numbers which helped propel the Oakland Raiders to a 12-4 record and an appearance in the playoffs.
That success was carried into the next season. Carr would throw for 492 yards and 5 scores through Week 2, but he became an entirely different player one week later. He failed to top 200 yards in any of his next three games, with all three losing efforts. He'd go on to throw multiple interceptions in a game five times last season, something he had done just seven times in the three previous seasons combined.
By our metrics, Carr finished as the 22nd-best quarterback in the 2017 season. He'd finish with just the 24th-most FanDuel points per game last season, and that was with touchdown-maker Michael Crabtree, who is no longer with the team.
It's thus no surprise that Carr's Week 1 salary this season fell all the way to $6,600. The drop may not have been far enough either. The Raiders will play host to a very talented Los Angeles Rams defensive on Monday night.
The Rams gave up the eighth-fewest FanDuel points per game to opposing quarterbacks in 2017, and their defense has arguably gotten better over the offseason with the additions of Marcus Peters, Aqib Talib and Ndamukong Suh. Former Kansas City Chief and familiar AFC West foe Peters has picked off Carr twice, something I'm sure he'll try to remind Carr of on Sunday.
Carr's salary is good for the 19th-highest of the week at his position, and we project him as the QB23 for the Sunday/Monday slate. If the game goes as expected, there could easily be more room for his salary to fall in the coming weeks.
Other Big Movers
Deshaun Watson, Houston Texans: $6,700 | $8,200
Jimmy Garoppolo, San Francisco 49ers: $6,000 | $7,100
Jared Goff, Los Angeles Rams: $6,500 | $7,500
