Shocking Truth? Derek Carr’s Retirement Leaves Saints Fans Stunned and Speculating

New Orleans Saints fans were stunned, and some relieved, that quarterback Derek Carr announced his sudden retirement on Saturday. It seemed to be a move not many were expecting.

Beyond the Headlines: Unpacking The Derek Carr injury Conspiracy Theories

Rumors have been swirling for weeks that Carr was dealing with a shoulder injury that would cost him the 2025 season. This kicked mock drafts into high gear, and convinced many that the Saints would take a quarterback with the 9th overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. So when the Saints didn't do that, some started to wonder if Carr was actually going to miss as much time as the rumors indicated.

Then the Saints took Louisville quarterback Tyler Shough in the second round of the NFL Draft, and it just created more confusion.

During this period of confusion, some NFL reporters (respected ones like Dianna Russini) said that contacts around the league were speculating that Carr's injury may not be that serious. The reports suggested that this is a ruse to keep Carr off the field until he could be traded or released from the Saints organization. Multiple other conspiracies around the injury were being floated by respected NFL writers.

Another report came from NFL Network's Jane Slater, who just this week reported that Carr was injured in a Week 14 game against the New York Giants. Because the injury was so late in the year, Carr never really had a chance to ramp his throwing back up before the Saints season ended. It wasn't until this spring that he started getting ready for the upcoming year that he noticed the injury in his shoulder.

Derek Carr's Saints Legacy: Were Fans Too Quick To Judge His Performance?

While some fans are quick to cast Carr off, it's not like he was terrible for the Saints. Since joining the team in 2023, Carr threw for 6,023 yards, 40 touchdowns, and just 13 interceptions. Sure, the team was just 14-13 in his starts, but watching the Saints over that period, it wasn't really Carr's fault that they lost a lot of those games.

In the games Carr started for the Saints in 2024, the team had three blowout wins (47-10 vs Carolina, 44-19 vs Dallas, and 35-14 vs Cleveland), two close wins, 3 losses by a field goal or less, a loss by 7, and a loss by 13. Carr never threw more than one interception per game last season, and had a Passer Rating over 100 in four games. He was also sacked in all but two of his starts last year.

During his first year with the Saints in 2023, Carr led the team to a winning record at 9-8 on the season. He threw for 3,878 yards, 25 touchdowns, and just 8 interceptions. He had a Passer Rating over 100 in more than half of his starts that year, and threw for over 300 yards 6 times. But, much like the theme in 2024, Carr was sacked a lot. He was sacked 31 times in 17 games, an average of just under 2 sacks per game. Twice in 2023 Carr was sacked 4 times in a single game.

So while many are ready to cast Carr off, and are celebrating his sudden retirement, replacing his production right away might be a tough ask.

Saints' QB Crossroads: Who Will Replace Carr's Production and Lead New Orleans?

When C.J. Stroud was a rookie in 2023, he won Offensive Rookie of the Year and was named to the Pro Bowl. He took the Houston Texans to a 9-6 record in his starts, threw for 4,108 yards, with 23 touchdowns, and 5 interceptions. Numbers that are comparable to Derek Carr's two years with the Saints.

So in order to replace Carr's production in New Orleans with Tyler Shough, you're going to have to hope the second round pick produces Rookie of the Year type numbers. Or you turn it over to Spencer Rattler again, and hope he builds on last year's results.

The dark horse option that the team trades for Atlanta Falcons veteran QB Kirk Cousins. But then you have to hope a 37-year-old QB can find one more year of gas in his arm, while you get Shough ready.

They say the grass isn't always greener on the other side, and now Saints fans will just have to see how green the grass gets on the other side of Derek Carr.