ALAMEDA, Calif. - Derek Carr believes he has made steady progress in his rookie season as an NFL quarterback even if it hasnt always been evident in his results.Those subtle steps to becoming a more polished pro passer paid off in a big way last week in the signature performance of Carrs rookie season with the Oakland Raiders.Carr threw three touchdown passes and was in complete control of the game when the Raiders beat their Bay Area rivals last Sunday in a 24-13 victory over the San Francisco 49ers.Carr now looks to follow that up with another strong performance this week when Oakland (2-11) visits Kansas City (7-6) for the second meeting between the teams in less than four weeks.The biggest development for Carr has been the way he has been able to control defences with his eyes or shoulders, creating openings for his receivers. Carr said he did that a little in college but had had to learn to do it more often and with more subtlety as a pro.Its been cool to learn because your eyes can dictate a lot of throws being open, he said Wednesday. You can help yourself out a lot, especially in zone coverages and all those things. Its been nice to be able to progress and do it in games, not just practice.In a season that started with 10 straight losses and included coach Dennis Allens firing, Carr has provided a reason for optimism with his play at quarterback. He threw two touchdown passes in a turnover-free debut against the New York Jets, almost led a late rally at New England, threw four TD passes in a loss to San Diego and threw a winning TD pass last month against Kansas City.But the performance against the 49ers was by far his best. Carr completed 22 of 28 passes for 254 yards with no turnovers, posting the highest passer rating (140.2) for an Oakland quarterback since Rich Gannon had a 141.9 against the Giants in 2001.It came a week after the low point of his season when he threw two interceptions and got pulled for Matt Schaub in the fourth quarter of a 52-0 loss at St. Louis that was Oaklands most lopsided defeat since 1961.But even in that game, Carr saw improvement in the way he was able to control the defence.Ive seen him grow a lot that way, interim coach Tony Sparano said. Hes done a good job. He can use his vision really well. Hes starting to play with the secondary that way with his eyes and has a much more definitive plan on what hes doing with the football before the snap.Those changes helped Carr succeed in crucial situations last week when the offensive line gave him plenty of time to throw. Carr completed 9 of 10 passes for 98 yards and three touchdowns on third down. He even handled the little pressure he faced well, completing 6 of 7 for 93 yards in those situations, according to Pro Football Focus.For the season, Carr has completed 60.5 per cent of his passes for 2,676 yards, 17 touchdowns and 11 interceptions for a 78.3 passer rating. He has also been sacked just 16 times as he has shown the ability to get rid of the ball quickly after watching his older brother David get sacked an NFL record 76 times as a rookie in 2002 with Houston.He knows how to move in the pocket, Kansas City defensive lineman Dontari Poe said. He doesnt play like a rookie at all. Hes a real good quarterback. It really wasnt a secret though. We knew that watching film on him.NOTES: CB Tarell Brown did not practice after leaving Sundays game briefly with an injured right leg. ... WR Rod Streater, who is still on short-term IR, did not practice because of soreness in his broken foot. ... WR Denarius Moore (knee, ankle) got hurt away from the building and did not practice. ... RT Menelik Watson (ankle, foot) also was sidelined. ... The Raiders signed WR Kenny Shaw and TE Evan Wilson to the practice squad.___AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP_NFL Jonathan Ericsson Jersey . During the furious first few hours of free agency Tuesday, the team agreed to terms with strong safety Donte Whitner, a Cleveland native who cant wait to play in his hometown. Anthony Mantha Jersey . The 23-year-old restricted free agent appeared in all 48 games last season, finishing second among all Sabres skaters with 15 goals and 34 points. http://www.redwingshockeyauthentic.com/mike-green-jersey/ . The unrestricted free agent agreed to terms with the club on Thursday on a one-year, two-way deal worth $700,000. Jimmy Howard Jersey . This should be celebrated because it will not always be this way. With the amount of money given to players by their clubs these days, it is a wonder that so many of those teams allow the sport to continue to take away many of their assets so they can play for a different team in the middle of their season. Niklas Kronwall Jersey .com) - Eric Fehr and Marcus Johansson each registered a pair of goals, as Washington spoiled the head coaching debut of Peter Horachek by picking up a 6-2 victory in Toronto on Wednesday.LOS ANGELES -- Trevor Lewis scored his fourth goal of the post-season, Jonathan Quick made 21 saves, and the Los Angeles Kings forced a seventh game in the Freeway Faceoff series with a 2-1 victory over the Anaheim Ducks in Game 6 on Wednesday night. Jake Muzzin scored an early goal for the Kings, who ended their three-game skid with another sturdy defensive effort at home. Los Angeles improved to 6-1 in post-season elimination games over the last two seasons while beating Ducks goalie John Gibson for the first time in his six-game NHL career. Kyle Palmieri scored and Gibson stopped 21 shots for the top-seeded Ducks, who missed the chance to clinch their first trip to the Western Conference finals since 2007. Game 7 is Friday night at Honda Center. The Southern California rivals scintillating first post-season meeting is the NHLs only second-round series still going. The winner faces the defending Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks, who will have at least four days off before the conference finals open. The Kings again proved their post-season credentials are unassailable after winning a Stanley Cup title in 2012 and returning to the conference finals last year. Responding to Anaheims three straight wins with calm, intelligent defence, Los Angeles forced its second seven-game series of this post-season after rallying from an 0-3 deficit in the first round to stun San Jose. Four days after Gibson made his NHL playoff debut at Staples Center by shutting out the Kings to even the series, the 20-year-old goalie had a rougher time in his third game in the Ducks net. Lewis scored on an eminently stoppable shot, the puck trickling between Gibsons pads in the second period. Quick finally outplayed his young rival, and the Kings forced Game 7 despite getting just one goal from Jeff Carter and none from Anze Kopitar, Drew Doughty, Dustin Brown, Justin Williams, Slava Voynov or Jarret Stoll in the series.dddddddddddd The Kings came out for their fifth elimination game of the spring with the same fire they possessed in their first four, setting the pace and outhitting the Ducks early. Los Angeles took the lead midway through the first period when Kopitar slid a pass through the slot to Muzzin, who hit a mostly open net for the defencemans third goal of the post-season, his first in 11 games. Kopitar got his seventh assist of the post-season and extended his overall NHL playoff scoring lead, while Marian Gaborik scored his 13th point in 11 games with the other assist. Gaborik nearly scored his sixth goal of the series later in the period, but the puck hopped over his stick after Gibson ventured far from his net and banked a clearing attempt off teammate Ryan Getzlafs leg. Lewis doubled the Kings lead with an innocent-looking wrist shot that sneaked between Gibsons legs for his first bad goal of the post-season. Lewis, a grinding forward, scored just six times in the entire regular season. The Ducks scored 1:38 later. Nick Bonino jumped on Tanner Pearsons turnover and got it to Palmieri, who wrapped it around Quicks net for his first playoff goal since Anaheims first-round opener. Anaheim had two power plays in the third period, but the unit that scored five goals in the previous four games couldnt connect. NOTES: F Kyle Clifford returned to the Kings lineup after a one-game benching, replacing Jordan Nolan. ... The Kings improved to 5-0 in the post-season when leading after two periods. ... Kopitar has points in 12 of the Kings 13 playoff games, but hasnt scored a goal in this series. ' ' '