There’s a narrative that’s floated around for a couple years now that Derek Carr doesn’t play well in cold or wet weather. The theory behind some of that talk is that Carr’s “average” hand size doesn’t necessarily translate to conditions where gripping the ball can be a challenge.
As it turns out, Carr proved last week that he has no trouble gripping a football. In fact, he doesn’t even need the laces.
On his first game-winning touchdown pass to Michael Crabtree, Carr had to make a quick throw with the clock running. He didn’t even bother getting his fingers on the laces.
Here’s the proof in two separate images.
The first image shows Carr as waits in the pocket. This is a split second before he brings the football back to throw and where Carr would have adjusted his hand if he was going to do it. His right hand is nowhere near the laces.
A zoomed-in photo from his back shows Carr never adjusted his fingers on the ball.
Considering the pressure, it was a great throw to make with a good grip – even more impressive knowing Carr was squeezing only leather.
For what it’s worth, Carr went with a more conventional grip on his second touchdown throw to Crabtree. His fingers were on the laces for that one.
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