Raiders quarterback Derek Carr expects to test Richard Sherman (w/video)

ALAMEDA - In less than half his rookie season, Raiders quarterback Derek Carr already has earned a reputation for not shying away from the game’s top cornerbacks.

If he feels as if he can get the ball to a certain spot and give his receiver a realistic chance to make the catch, Carr just lets it rip.

“I’m not really surprised at all. He doesn’t know any better,” Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman said, when asked if he was shocked that Carr went after him in an exhibition game. “If you don’t know any better, you don’t know better.”

Carr attacked Sherman on the third play of the game Aug. 28 at the Coliseum, with a deep pass for wide receiver Denarius Moore. The pass fell incomplete. But Carr had served notice he wasn’t afraid to go at Sherman, regarded by many as the best cornerback in the league, or anyone else in Seattle’s vaunted secondary.

On the 10th play of the 12-play drive, Carr went right back at Moore, with Sherman in coverage. Moore made a nice catch of an off-the-mark pass and turned it into a first down at the Seahawks 5-yard line.

The Raiders scored a touchdown two plays later. That energized the crowd and started a 28-point outburst, with Carr accounting for three of the scores through the air.

“If I were just to eliminate one side of a play or a progression, I’m hurting us,” Carr said, “and I can’t do that. I’ve got to be able to trust that our guys will make the plays against whoever is guarding them. But I promise you, I know where those guys are at all times as soon as I break the huddle.”

Yet, time and again, Carr has gone after the opposing team’s top cornerback. Against the Chargers, Carr connected with receiver Andre Holmes for a 77-yard touchdown on the third play of the game.

Carr targeted Holmes because he noticed Holmes in one-on-one coverage. It didn’t matter that the cornerback was well-regarded Brandon Flowers. He also has gone after the likes of Patriots standout cornerback Darrelle Revis and Arizona Cardinals All-Pro cornerback Patrick Peterson.

“I know we can say, ‘Hey, you threw at him, you threw at him.’ It’s not an arrogant thing,” Carr said. “It’s not one of those things at all. Trust me, I know where they are and I’m very careful about where we’re throwing it, what routes we’re throwing.”

Carr gets another shot at Sherman and the Seahawks on Sunday. This time, the game will count in the standings, it will be played in Seattle and Sherman will be on high alert.

Sherman oftentimes goes long stretches without seeing any action. He said he is expecting Carr to test him once again, based on how Carr played the first seven games.

“He’s just been slinging the ball around,” Sherman said. “I don’t think he thinks about who’s guarding anybody or anything like that. He just slings it. He’s got nothing to lose, obviously.”

Carr’s fearlessness isn’t lost on Seahawks coach Pete Carroll, who recalled Carr’s strong showing in that exhibition game. “He played great against us,” Carroll said, “and we’ve seen nothing but that, really, since Tony (Sparano, coach) took over; the emphasis of really trusting him, believing in him, giving him a chance to win the games.”

Sparano said it was evident during the pre-draft evaluations of Carr that he was “mature beyond his years” and not fazed by much.

Sparano said Carr simply is doing what he is coached to do by offensive coordinator Greg Olson and quarterbacks coach John DeFilippo.

“It’s a good thing for a young quarterback to continue to go through progressions, work through progressions and whatever his read tells him to do, that’s where the ball should go,” Sparano said. “He’s not being spooked really by anybody that way.”