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Orleans star announcement that he is leaving the New Orleans Saints now presents another significant issue for the team…
Let the Derek Carr sweepstakes begin.
On Tuesday, the Raiders released Carr after nine seasons with the club after the veteran quarterback refused to waive his no-trade clause.
“We have a lot of respect for Derek Carr and what he has meant to the Raiders organization for the last nine years,” Raiders coach Josh McDaniels and general manager Dave Ziegler said in a joint statement released by the team on Tuesday.
“Derek has done great things in this league and we’re thankful to have been able to work with him this past year. He is a true professional and we appreciate his hard work in striving to produce the results we all desire. We wish Derek and his family all the best in the future.”
Had the Raiders kept Carr on their roster, $41.9 million of his contract over the next two years would have become guaranteed. Now Carr is a free agent for the first time in his career as he has been linked to the Saints and the Jets.
New Orleans has shown more interest in Carr than any other team before his release, as he visited the team on February 8. Carr refused a trade not because he wasn’t interested in playing for the Saints but because he wanted to enter free agency.
The Saints will need to figure out their salary cap situation if they’re going to sign Carr. According to Over The Cap, New Orleans is more than $59 million over the salary cap, which is more than any other team in the NFL.
Carr figures to be a candidate to sign with the Saints because of his relationship with coach Dennis Allen. The two were together with the Raiders in 2014, Carr’s rookie season. But Allen didn’t coach Carr as long as he was fired after a 0-4 start that year.
Now that he’s a free agent, Carr will likely visit a few other teams around the league. His first start could be in Florham Park as the Jets are looking for a veteran quarterback this offseason.
According to Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated, the Jets and the Saints inquired about Carr when they were hoping to trade him. Earlier this week, the Jets hired Todd Downing as their passing game coordinator.
That is significant because Downing was Carr’s quarterback coach (2015-16) and later his offensive coordinator (2017) with the Raiders for three seasons. All three of those seasons, Downing was Carr’s coach with the Raiders, he made the Pro Bowl including in 2016 when Carr passed for 3,937 yards, 28 touchdowns and six interceptions as he helped the Raiders reach the playoffs for the first time since 2002.
Jets All-Pro cornerback Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner, who was named the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year last week, appears to be actively recruiting Carr to come to the Jets.
“Aye @derekcarrqb, you remember your last words before I left the Pro Bowl? No need for a response; I’m just asking,” Gardner wrote on Twitter.
However, the Jets could also be in the Aaron Rodgers sweepstakes as well. Rodgers has said following his “darkness retreat,” in which he will spend four days and four nights in darkness isolation, he will decide if he wants to return for the 2023 season and where.
The Jets also have ties to Rodgers as they hired Nathaniel Hackett as their offensive coordinator last month. Hackett worked with Rodgers as the Packers’ offensive coordinator from 2019-21.
The Jets are $264,498 over the salary cap, so whether it’s Carr or Rodgers, they will need to free up some money before the start of the new league year on March 15. Carr is expected to take his time and visit multiple teams before deciding.
The only problem with the Jets potentially waiting on Rodgers is no one knows what he’s thinking. Also, he could take a month before deciding if he wants to continue playing football and if he wants to return to the Packers or not. Meanwhile, Carr is free to sign with any team now that he’s been released.
Jets owner Woody Johnson told reporters during his availability after the season that he will not have a playoff mandate on coach Robert Saleh and general manager Joe Douglas in 2023. However, after entering December 7-4 and firmly in position to make the playoffs for the first time since 2010, the Jets lost six consecutive games to end the year.
No matter what Johnson told reporters, the pressure is on Saleh and Douglas to make the playoffs and end the longest postseason drought in the NFL. If they can sign Carr, a proven commodity in the league, they have to go for it, even if it means missing out on Rodgers.
The Jets and Saints will compete with teams such as the Buccaneers, the Panthers, the Titans, the Colts, the Commanders and maybe the Texans for Carr’s services. Free agency doesn’t officially begin for another month, but Carr’s tour around the NFL is just beginning.
