Saints Address Derek Carr's Abrupt Exit From New Orleans

The New Orleans Saints certainly looked different when Week 1 of the 2025 season rolled around than expected.

When the Saints entered the offseason last year, Derek Carr was still the expected starting quarterback for the team in 2025, although it did also seem likely that the team was going to draft a quarterback as well. The Saints stood by Carr publicly and called him the team's starter, but then he abruptly retired seemingly out of the blue.

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The Saints regrouped and entered the season with a quarterback room led by Spencer Rattler and Tyler Shough, which was certainly a younger group than initially expected last offseason. On Wednesday, Saints general manager Mickey Loomis and head coach Kellen Moore spoke about a variety of topics. One question that was brought up is how Carr's decision impacted the team's planning last offseason.

The Saints opened up

Dec 29, 2024; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Saints quarterback Derek Carr (4) walks the field before a game against the Las Vegas Raiders at Caesars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images | Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

"I would say it just catches you a little off guard," Loomis said of Carr's decision to retire. "So, you've got to recalibrate. What's our plan moving forward? Early in the offseason it's different than later. I don't know, it's just hard to describe. That's a good question but it just changes your course a little bit. That's the best way to describe it."

Loomis was then asked if the team has Carr's rights if he were to decide to come out of retirement.

"Yeah, he's on our retired list," Loomis continued when asked whether the team has the rights to Carr if he wanted to play again. "No, I haven't had any conversations with him."

Carr cracked the door open a bit throughout the season about a potential return to the National Football League. If he does decide to play again and a team wants him, they will have to give the Saints something in return for him. At the end of the day, the Carr era is over in New Orleans and has been since last offseason. If the Saints could somehow get a draft pick out of him this offseason, that would be a huge win.

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