Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Derek Carr brushes off rumor team almost traded for Tom Brady

Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Derek Carr is doing his best to ignore recent reports that the franchise nearly brought in Tom Brady to replace him until Jon Gruden killed the deal.

The report came from UFC president Dana White who recently claimed he played an integral part in almost brokering the deal before Gruden killed it because he apparently did not want Brady and Robert Gronkowski to play for the Raiders.

Carr was asked Tuesday if he had yet become immune to stories about his future, to which he simply replied: ‘By now, I would hope so. It is what it is.’

Derek Carr brushed off reports that the Las Vegas Raiders almost replaced him with Tom Brady

Dana White claimed he played an integral part in almost brokering the deal for Brady (above)

Speaking during ESPN’s UFC 278 coverage, Gronkowski brought the shock story to the fore before White laid it out for a stunned audience. 

‘I worked to put that deal together for Brady and Gronk to come to the Raiders,’ White said on the broadcast. 

‘It was almost a done deal. And at the last minute, [Jon] Gruden blew the deal up and said that he didn’t want him and all hell broke loose, man. It was crazy.

UFC President Dana White made his claims about the almost deal during UFC 278 coverage

Carr throws ball during warmups before preseason game against Minnesota Vikings 

‘And Brady was already looking at houses. It wasn’t said yet that Gronk was going to be coming. So Las Vegas would have had Brady and Gronk the year that the Bucs won the Super Bowl except Gruden blew the deal up.’

Gronkowski confirmed the story was indeed ‘exactly what happened.’ The Raiders would have needed to trade with New England for Gronkowski who was still on the Patriots’ roster at the time.

Brady joined the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in March, 2020 as a free agent, signing a two-year, $50million contract. 

A month later, Gronkowski joined Brady in Tampa after the Bucs traded a fourth round pick in exchange for a seventh and the eventual Hall of Fame tight end.

Carr smiles on sidelines while watching teammates play in preseason against Vikings

This is not the first time Carr has been subjected to rumors about being replaced during his time with the Raiders, as the rumors seemed to be a yearly occurrence while Gruden was in charge of the team.

‘It was a moment to put things in perspective, it really doesn’t matter. At the end of the day, anything I say will just be blasted out there so I’m just going to completely remove myself and just keep trying to play football,’ Carr said. 

‘It’s been nice just answering football questions. Hopefully, no more drama in the city.’

Carr also apparently did not hear of the rumor started by White immediately as he was reportedly helping someone within the Raiders organization deal with the death of a loved one. 

Meanwhile, Gruden resigned on October 2021 with the Raiders 3-2 after a New York Times article revealed the contents of his private emails. 

The Raiders and new head coach Josh McDaniels made it a point to commit to Carr in both the short and long term this offseason.

Not only did they sign Carr to a whooping three-year $121.5million extension, they also traded for his former college wide receiver Davante Adams. 

Adams and Carr not only set multiple passing and receiving records while they played together at Fresno State, but the former Green Bay Packers wide receiver has also been arguably the best wide receiver in the NFL in recent years.

Hopefully this level of commitment to Carr indeed answering more questions about football and less questions about his future with the team. 

 Devante Adams (left), Josh McDaniels (middle), and  Carr (right) discuss play during practice

Carr leads the Raiders offensive line onto field during joint practices against Patriots