By Ross Jackson
An important intersection may have arrived for the New Orleans Saints. As rumors swirl that presumed starting quarterback Derek Carr wants out of New Orleans, the Saints shouldn’t hesitate to give him what he wants.
The Saints have faced so much turmoil around this situation, and what now stares them in the eyes is more than the potential departure of their starting passer. It could become the arrival of a fresh start.
If Carr is really going through such extraneous efforts to get off the roster, as league sources have told multiple insiders is likely the case, what would be the benefit of forcing him to stay?
With the potential for ripple effects throughout the locker room and the (even if slim) chance of division, the worst thing a team can do in a situation like this is be indecisive. The Saints should make the tough decision and find a way to part ways. At this point, that would most likely be done by facilitating a post-June 1 trade or release.
There’s buzz around NFL circles that Derek Carr has been wanting out of the #Saints all offseason — and his shoulder injury might be part of that push.
Meanwhile, the #Saints have been planning to draft a QB regardless. But we have not heard the end of this. https://t.co/syg5wQ9Rix pic.twitter.com/unTpVMRqlg
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) April 16, 2025
The Saints signed Carr to a four-year, $150 million deal back in 2023. Since then, the team has won just 14 games, and he missed seven due to injury in 2024.
New Orleans has since drafted two quarterbacks and looked to be on the path to drafting a third this offseason even before the Carr fiasco took shape. The Saints have also missed the playoffs in both seasons, extending their postseason absence to four consecutive years.
The team also fired a head coach in-season last year. The decision made Dennis Allen the first coach in the franchise’s history to be outright fired since the 1980s (Dick Nolan).
During that stretch, Carr has been seen yelling at players and coaches on the sidelines, continues to have an embattled relationship with the city that supports his club and has been M.I.A. since telling ESPN’s Katherine Terrell that he won’t take a pay cut.
That is, until he launched a new YouTube Channel, Home Grown Network with his brother, David Carr. The first video was posted April 7, four days prior to the initial shoulder injury news. The pair also released a car review that’s gotten much attention for the wrong reasons by scorned Saints fans.
The video was released days after it was reported that Carr’s season may be over before it begins due to a shoulder injury. Even if the video was recorded prior to the injury announcement, the timing is simply poor and a bit tone deaf.
This situation is already messy, and it promises only to get messier if Carr’s goal is truly to use the shoulder injury as a means of pushing himself out of New Orleans, as many expect. The veteran quarterback would likely be better off simply demanding a trade publicly.
Obviously, if the shoulder injury is what it looks to be on face value, the scrutiny calms down. However, it doesn’t change the fact that the Saints should embrace the chance to start their next era.
New head coach Kellen Moore is a first-time head coach that now has the opportunity to handpick his starter, or at least his first starter.
Moore has previously said that he arrived in New Orleans under the impression that Carr will be the starter in 2025. However, the team has also reportedly been doing homework on this year’s quarterback draft class since the college football season ended.
Kellen Moore said he took this job with the idea that Derek Carr would be his QB
— Nick Underhill (@nick_underhill) March 10, 2025
It seems the organization knew that it was time to invest into what’s next after Carr, even if Carr was still in place for 2025. Now, they should look to accelerate the process.
Between this year’s crop of quarterbacks and last year’s draft pick Spencer Rattler, Moore may be better off getting a look at a young talent that has the potential to be the team’s future starter than relying on a late-career quarterback in his first year.
Success isn’t guaranteed in the process. But it wasn’t guaranteed with Carr as their starter either. What is guaranteed may be more valuable: a much-needed fresh start.
This is a chance for the Saints to turn the page on the previous era and start anew. Whether Carr is genuinely sidelined with injury or eventually traded away, it’s a chance that the team should take.
