It’s been a complex offseason for quarterback Derek Carr, who recently opted to retire from the NFL. His shoulder injury will require surgery, and he ultimately decided to call it quits. His brother and former NFL quarterback, David, shared more about the news on the ‘NFL Insiders’ with Ian Rapoport.
Derek Carr’s Decision To Retire Was Not Made Lightly
Carr played in ten games for the New Orleans Saints in the 2024 season, his second year with the franchise. The year before, he was pushed out of the Las Vegas Raiders organization, and he was evidently upset by this.
In Week 14 of the 2024 season against the New York Giants, Carr attempted to dive over a tackler to reach the first-down marker while scrambling to the right side. He landed awkwardly on his shoulder, and that would turn out to be his final snap as an NFL quarterback. His brother, David, spoke about the decision with Ian Rapoport:
“His children are getting older, they’re getting to the age now where they want to play catch with Dad. They’re starting to play sports and are starting to be active. That happens with a lot of retired players or players close to retirement.”
“Then you kind of compound that with the questions and the decision with the fact that his shoulder wasn’t what it was before, and when he tried to ramp up throwing again this year, it just didn’t feel right.”
Derek will now look to spend more time with his kids and hit the golf course, as seen in a video recorded by his wife on his first day of retirement.
Carr is thought to be completely at peace with his decision to walk away from the game, even though he left a significant amount of money on the table. David touched on that subject on the Insiders:
“He walked away from a lot of money. I look at it from a player’s perspective. You could have easily said I’ll have the surgery, let me just get through the season, just cut me a cheque. That’s a very real scenario.”
“I can tell in the last couple days that he’s definitely done playing and he’s moved on.”
— NFL analyst David Carr joins The Insiders to discuss the retirement of his brother Derek Carr, why the pull of family helped lead to retirement and whether Derek may un-retire… pic.twitter.com/GIwKDdIZMu
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet)
By retiring, Derek left $30 million on the table that he could have easily claimed from the New Orleans Saints. If he’d had the shoulder surgery, he likely would have been placed on season-ending injured reserve, meaning he could have sat and collected a hefty paycheck for very little work.
Instead, he did what he felt was right and avoided putting the Saints in that position, with such a hefty dent in their salary cap.
Life After Derek Carr in New Orleans
The New Orleans Saints will now be experimenting at quarterback in 2025, and it could be rookie Tyler Shough that gets the start when Week 1 rolls around.
Newly appointed head coach Kellen Moore wanted Shough as his project quarterback with his new team. Given the lack of competition for the starting role, he could now feature right away.
Spencer Rattler played in seven games in 2024, starting six. He threw four touchdowns and five interceptions in those games, but he does have a little experience now, having played in the league.
Coach Moore now has a decision on his hands, but Shough was the guy he drafted to be the future of the franchise. Maybe now that the future gets started a little earlier than expected.
