Matt McGloin

Raiders QB Derek Carr played well enough during extended action to stoke the flames about whether he or Matt Schaub is the better option to be the Raiders starting quarterback this season.

"He was better this game," Raiders coach Dennis Allen said of Carr, the team's second-round draft pick in May. "He made some improvement. ... Overall, he took a step forward."

Health-wise, Carr took a step backward when he suffered a concussion and a rib injury in the fourth quarter of his second NFL game. Lions defensive end Larry Webster landed on Carr with all his weight, and Carr pointed to his midsection when he picked himself up off the ground.

Allen said the concussion was the reason Carr got removed from the game. There was no immediate word on the severity of Carr's concussion or whether he broke any ribs.

Schaub was improved as well. His four drives yielded one touchdown. That came after a Lions penalty on a field-goal attempt kept alive a stalled drive. He looked sharp on his first drive, which ended when his pass into tight coverage got tipped into the air and intercepted. Carr completed 9 of 16 passes for 109 yards and a touchdown. On the scoring drive, he completed all six of his passes for 76 yards. This still looks like it's Schaub's job at this point, though. Matt McGloin would step into the QB2 role if Carr misses significant time. Carr will have to pass concussion protocol but it looks like he avoided a serious rib injury according to updates.