Quarterback (QB) Derek Carr of the Las Vegas Raiders wrote a letter of goodbye to his team on Thursday after playing nine seasons with them.

"It breaks my heart I didn't get an opportunity to say goodbye in person," Carr posted on Instagram, "We certainly have been on a roller coaster in our 9 years together. From the bottom of my heart, I am so grateful and appreciative of the years of support you gave to my family and me. We had our share of both heart breaking moments and thrilling game winning drives, and it always felt like you were there next to me."

Carr has started every of the games he played for the Raiders since the team selected him with the 36th pick in the NFL Draft in 2014. He threw 3201-for-4958 for a total of 35,222 yards and 217 touchdowns with a 63-79 record. He was named to the Pro Bowl thrice consecutively between 2015 and 2017.

Carr signed a five-year, $125 million contract extension with the Raiders in 2017 and then inked another three-year, $121.5 million deal in 2022.

However, the Raiders only made two postseason appearances since Carr became their commander and they lost in the American Football Conference (AFC) Wild Card Game on both occasions. The team finished the 2022 regular season with a 6-11 record after suffering three three-game losing streaks, including one at the beginning of the campaign.

"I'd rather go down with the ship, you know what I'm saying, if I have to," Carr wrote. "I meant that. But I never envisioned it ending this way. That fire burning inside of me to win a championship still rages."

Carr, who turns 32 years old in late March, received a no-trade clause in his latest extension with the Raiders. The team can cut him within three days of the Super Bowl for a $5.625 million salary-cap hit but that means they will let him go without getting anything in return. If Carr stays in the Raiders or agrees to a trade before February 15, he will get $40 million of guaranteed money.

Moreover, since no trade will be official in the NFL until March 15, the Raiders count on the following three things to happen to trade Carr: the player's consent; a trading partner that still believes in Carr; and their will to the deal until it really happens.

"Again, we've had a great relationship," the Raiders' head coach Josh McDaniels said. "He's done a lot of great things, and anything that's said otherwise is incorrect. So we'll look forward to that, and like I said, there will be some time between now and then."