Off Topic » most well-liked players in the locker room

ALAMEDA, Calif. - Of all the lessons Derek Carr has learned in his first NFL season, having a strong relationship with the offensive line has been maybe the most important.The Raiders rookie quarterback has been one of the most well-liked players in the locker room since Oakland acquired him with the 36th overall pick in this years draft.He is as comfortable talking shop with the teams wide receivers as he is joking with the defensive linemen.Yet its been Carrs rapport with the five guys blocking for him up front that has stood out the most — and for obvious reasons.You have to have a great relationship with everybody because that whole team has to believe in you, Carr said Tuesday.But with that said, you want that group to believe in you. Theyre the ones that are going to fight for you, play hurt for you. Theyre going to go that extra mile to make sure youre OK.Carr returned to practice one day after being sent home by interim Oakland coach Tony Sparano when Carr showed up feeling ill.The second-round pick said hes feeling better and expects to start in Sundays season finale in Denver. He even arrived to practice ahead of time to get an early jump on things.I got here early to work out and see how Id feel during that, Carr said. After that I felt pretty good. Felt good at practice. Not 100 per cent, but it felt good to practice and be out here.Carr leads all rookie quarterbacks in yards passing and touchdowns.Hes also closing in on the league record for most completions by a rookie quarterback. Carr has 330 completions and needs only 10 to move past Indianapolis Andrew Luck and 25 to beat the mark established by Sam Bradford of the St. Louis Rams in 2010.Left tackle Donald Penn said the teams trust in the rookie quarterback developed almost from the instant he first stepped into the huddle with the starting offence.Other Oakland offensive linemen, such as veteran right tackle Khalif Barnes and rookie left guard Gabe Jackson, have echoed similar sentiments about Carr.Sparano has been Oaklands offensive line coach since 2013 and has maintained those duties even after he was promoted to interim coach after Dennis Allen was fired four games into the season.Its Sparanos belief that Carrs relationship with his offensive linemen is important, if not more so, than the one the quarterback has with his wide receivers.Derek makes the people around him better, theres no doubt about that, Sparano said. Any time you can get the respect of the line room the way that hes gained the respect of the line room that says something. Theyre the guys that have to go out there and block it up 75, 80 plays for you. I think those guys would do anything for Derek.We need those guys up front to block and they need to trust whats behind them.Notes: Outside linebacker Khalil Mack was limited in practice with a hamstring injury. Macks injury — which occurred late in Sundays win over Buffalo — was originally diagnosed as cramping. ... CB TJ Carrie did not practice and Sparano said there is some concern the rookie defensive back might not play against the Broncos. ... WR Vince Brown (groin), WR Denarius Moore (knee/ankle), RT Menelik Watson (foot), CB Chimdi Chekwa (hamstring) and TE Brian Leonhardt (concussion) did not practice. 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Cheap Adidas NHL Jerseys .C. -- Cam Newton wasnt flawless on Sunday.Next stop on Around the QB Horn: Hamilton, Ontario. This is where youll find the Beast of the East, a Tiger-Cat team that went 8-2 against East Division opponents. Thats tops in the Division with two more wins than Toronto, four more than Montreal. Simply put, Hamilton is considered a major threat to be playing in Regina on November 24th. Offensively this team is led by 14-year veteran Henry (Smilin Hank) Burris. Hes a 38-year-old quarterback that plays like hes in his mid-20s. Burris can still make any throw on the field, often times making it look easy! He possesses the ability to make defenders miss and can gash a defense with his legs just as well as he can with his cannon-like right arm. Some folks talk about Henrys turnover woes, which do seem to come at the most inappropriate times, but what makes Burris so good is he can do things other quarterbacks cant and often times makes it look easy. So when he does make a mistake, it can leave you scratching your head and wondering what he was thinking. He was just being Henry, which is pretty damn amazing. Id much rather have a quarterback with his rare and unique skill set at the helm and try to real him in a bit than one without his abilities and ask him to do things hes not capable of. Put it this way, with Henry, you live and die by the sword, but at least you have one! He gives the Ticats a chance to win every time on the field. Much has been made about Dan LeFevours play this year in short yardage situations. When you digest the fact that you have a 38-year-old starting quarterback, you dont want to put him into the most violent scenario, ultimately the short yardage game. Kent Austin managed his quarterbacks and did it wisely by removing Henry from this abuse and inserted a younger and certainly talented rushing quarterback in his own right, in LeFevour. LeFevour is a second-yeaar Ticat from Central Michigan who has scored seven touchdowns on 54 rushing attempts.dddddddddddd Thats 54 less touches on Burris in a guaranteed contact and severe collision mode situation. LeFevour has been solid when given the opportunity to chuck it down field as he has completed 40-62 passes for 394 yards, a 64.5 percent completion percentage. Id look for a few attempts when hes in short yardage scenarios Sunday, as that would be a tendency breaker... A couple of weeks back, we saw the emergence of Jeremiah Masoli, a dynamic young quarterback from Ole Miss. He was used in a wildcat formation against Montreal and was extremely effective. Masoli is a firecracker of a quarterback that is cut from the same cloth as many of the leagues running backs at 510 and 221 lbs. Coach Austin has spared his veteran gunslinger some obvious punishment in short yardage situations this season by employing the skill set of the younger LeFevour, and balanced an aggressive Montreal defence with the deployment of Masoli in the misdirection wildcat offence. But - and this is a big but - he took away valuable touches from one of the most electrifying running backs in the CFL this year, super-rookie CJ Gable. Austin continues to tinker and tweak his offense, keeping opposing defenses on their toes and often times, their heels. Austin is creative, effective and certainly not afraid of mixing it up from week to week. Lets see how the “Mad Scientist” Kent Austin attacks Montreals stout defence this Sunday. No doubt Burris will be slinging it all over the field making it look easy, LeFevour will be doing his thing in short yardage and maybe even Masoli will be deployed in the wildcat offence balancing up that aggressive Als defence. Should be a great game Sunday at the University of Guelphs Alumni Stadium! ' ' '