David Carr

David Duke Carr (born July 21, 1979) is an American former football quarterback who played 11 seasons in the National Football League (NFL).

Carr began as the starting quarterback at Fresno State during the 2000 and 2001 seasons after redshirting in 1999.

While he was quarterback, the Bulldogs went 7–5 and 11–3.

In his senior season the team beat Colorado, Oregon State, and Wisconsin, all members of BCS conferences.

There was speculation about whether the Bulldogs would qualify for a BCS bid, something then unheard of for a BCS non-automatic qualifying conference team.

They climbed to as high as number 8 in the polls, and Carr was on the cover of Sports Illustrated.

During his collegiate career, Carr completed 565 of 901 passes for 7,849 yards and threw 65 touchdowns versus 22 interceptions.

During his senior year, he won the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award and was a finalist for the 2001 Heisman Trophy, finishing fifth.

He played college football for the Fresno State Bulldogs and was selected first overall by the Houston Texans in the 2002 NFL Draft.

Carr also played for the Carolina Panthers, the New York Giants, and the San Francisco 49ers.

As a backup with the Giants, Carr received a Super Bowl ring after their victory over the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl XLVI.

He currently serves as the offensive coordinator at Bakersfield Christian High School.

Carr's status as a number one draft pick and subsequent career has led to him being considered a draft bust.

With the first overall pick of the 2002 NFL Draft, the Houston Texans, a new expansion team, selected Carr.

His professional career began on a productive note.

The Texans played their first regular season game on September 8, 2002, defeating the Dallas Cowboys, 19–10, at Houston's Reliant Stadium.

Houston became just the second expansion team to win its first game.

However, Carr was sacked 76 times during that season, which set a league record.

He also set the NFL record for fumble recoveries in a single season, recovering 12 of his own.

Both records still stand as of 2022.

He finished his rookie year of 2002 with 2,592 passing yards, 9 touchdowns, and 15 interceptions.

He also rushed for 282 yards along with 3 rushing touchdowns.

The Texans finished 4–12 in their first franchise year.

In the 2003 season, Carr played 12 games (11 starts) with 2,103 passing yards, 9 touchdowns, and 13 interceptions.

He also rushed for 151 yards with 2 rushing touchdowns and was sacked only 15 times.

The Texans finished with a record of 5–11 in 2003.

Carr started all 16 games in 2004 being sacked a league-leading 49 times.

He passed for 3,531 yards with 16 touchdowns and 14 interceptions.

The Texans finished 7–9 in 2004.

The 2005 season began poorly as the Texans were 1–9 in their first 10 games, and plummeted to a 2–14 record to finish the season.

Plagued by injuries and an ineffective offensive line that limited both the running and passing games, Carr still threw for 2,488 yards while being sacked a league-leading 68 times.

Despite the drop-off, the Texans exercised an option in Carr's contract that extended him for three years.

The Texans finished the 2006 season at 6–10.

For the season, Carr posted a completion percentage of 68.9% (a career-high) and tied the then single-game NFL record of 22 consecutive pass completions (against the Buffalo Bills).

On September 1, 2007, the Fresno State Bulldogs retired Carr's #8 jersey in his honor.

Former Fresno State football player Robbie Rouse (a junior in 2011) was the last player allowed to wear the number.

In 2016, he joined the NFL Network as an analyst.

David Carr attended Valley Oak Elementary School in Fresno, California.

He continued on to Clovis Unified's Kastner Intermediate School in Fresno, where he proceeded to break a number of California D-I middle school records as quarterback of the Thunderbirds.

After moving to Bakersfield, California, Carr attended Stockdale High School.