Before Derek Carr was even a teenager, he would accompany David Carr, his oldest brother and the Houston Texans quarterback, to the Texans’ facility.
David would break down film with Derek, explaining how a quarterback manages the game along the line of scrimmage. He taught him how to spot different blitzes and the rationale behind certain protection calls.
“The 12-year age difference kind of set me up almost like,” David said, “more of a mentor.”
That mentorship has gone from the football field, where Derek became a four-time Pro Bowler and 11-year starter, to the business world.
With 33-year-old Derek busy and focused on quarterbacking the New Orleans Saints, 45-year-old David sometimes gives a first look at a business deal, doing research and even meeting the prospective business partners for lunch.
David cautioned to Derek that batting 1.000 on every investment is impossible and preached the importance of investing in people rather than products while also following your passion. Derek took the latter lesson to heart when becoming an equity partner in OOFOS.
“People will come to us all the time about certain opportunities, and I just can’t do it,” Derek exclusively shared. “When I am an ambassador or have a deal or even invest in something, I will only do it if I believe in it.”
The advice also goes both ways — from older brother to youngest and vice versa.
David was initially apprehensive about endorsing Table Mountain Casino, but Derek, who is a spokesman for MGM Gaming and played in Las Vegas from 2020 to 2022, gave it a thumbs up because the casino has roots in the community and supports Fresno State and Valley Children’s Healthcare.
In addition to his work with Table Mountain Casino, David is a spokesman for a home builder called Bonadelle Neighborhoods, The Iron Office Gym, The Good Feet Store and Motor City car dealerships. An NFL Network analyst since 2016, he also appears in regular segments on iHeart radio segment and ABC30 News in Fresno.
Derek’s OOFOS Investment
The No. 1 overall pick in the 2002 NFL Draft, David played five of his 10-year NFL career for the expansion Texans before retiring in 2013.
Three years later, Derek was leading the Raiders to a 12-win season before breaking his fibula in Week 16 of the 2016 NFL season.
He started wearing OOFOS footwear as part of the recovery process.
“Immediately, my discomfort went from like a 10 out of 10 to a one out of 10,” Derek said. “I was like, ‘this insane.’”
Derek Carr wears OOFOS, which is the footwear brand he invested in.
Known for its foam technology, OOFOS sports slides, sandals and close-toed shoes are designed for post sports-recovery. Teachers, nurses, chefs and others who are on their feet all day also favor them.
Derek liked the footwear so much that he had his business team reach out to Darren Brown, the head of marketing for OOFOS.
Once one of the early founders of OOFOS sold off some of their shares, it opened up a rare opportunity, and Derek invested in the company in March of 2023.
“The rest is history,” Derek said. “Now we have a great partnership.”
Former NFL quarterback Alex Smith, whose broken right leg required 17 surgeries, and current South Carolina women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley also capitalized on the investment opportunity while Boston Bruins goalie Jeremy Swayman and Dancing with the Stars’ Emma Slater are OOFOS spokespeople.
Brothers Working Together
Derek was around sports stars from an early age.
When Derek came with David to the Texans’ facility, the 12-year-old kid got to throw passes to future Hall of Fame wide receiver Andre Johnson and went to nearly every offseason workout.
Now instead of being on the Texans’ field together, David and Derek are co-spokesmen for a couple of businesses in the Central Valley of California: Educational Employees Credit Union (EECU) and Valley Children’s Healthcare.
“What’s been fun about that is that we’ve been able to do it together,” David said. “We can bounce ideas off each other.”
David and Derek Carr film an advertisement for Educational Employees Credit Union.
Derek, who does commercials and appearances for EECU, has a very personal connection to Valley Children’s.
Derek’s oldest son, Dallas, was rushed into emergency surgery at Valley Children’s Healthcare in 2013 because of intestinal malrotation, a potentially life-threatening condition that affected his blood supply and intestinal tract, and spent several weeks there.
The Carrs even helped broker an agreement between Valley Children’s Healthcare and Fresno State, the university they both attended, in 2022. As a result of that deal, Valley Children’s provides $1 million a year to receive naming rights to Bulldog Stadium, and those funds go to operations, scholarships and youth programs at Fresno State.
The brothers even share the same business management team.
“Carla (Cossy) and I are most fortunate to be associated with the Carr brothers,” H Koal, the Carrs’ co-business manager, said. “They have a unique ability to put everyone at ease and make each person — with whom they interact — feel comfortable and valued.”
Video Venture
One of the Carrs’ newest entrepreneurial pursuits is working as creative collaborators with Moonracer Films, a Sacramento, Calif. video production company that makes documentaries, social media videos and commercials.
Moonracer produced Breaking Bread, a three-episode series exploring fine dining in Sacramento by having about a dozen chefs talk about their craft.
The Carrs are offering ideas on future cites and foods to feature.
“David and Derek are just different. They are creative. They’re humble. They’re kind. They’re also incredibly smart from a business standpoint,” Matthew Kolbert, president of Moonracer Films. “They’re also just great storytellers.”
The Carrs are also investors/executive producers in Moonracer’s two-hour documentary about the trading card/memorabilia industry tentatively called Billion-Dollar Hobby.
Considering the Carr brothers both work with some of the same companies, both are former Fresno State quarterbacks and both have first names that begin with D, it’s not surprising that fans often confuse David and Derek with the other.
When he goes somewhere with his family, David often plays a game, guessing how many times he’ll be called Derek vs. David.
“It’s usually about 50/50,” said David, who jokingly blamed his parents for the confusion. “That happens so much.”
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