The New Orleans Saints began 2023 free agency by addressing their biggest need with a deal to sign former Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Derek Carr.
The anticipated signing is one of the biggest moves for Saints coach Dennis Allen going into Year 2 and reunites him with a quarterback he drafted with the Raiders organization in 2014. What this move means for the Saints and their offense, and how it could likely be the first domino of many to come, including what the team does with quarterback Jameis Winston and wide receiver Michael Thomas.
Why did the saints take such a step?
The offense has struggled to find its footing since the retirement of quarterback Drew Brees after the 2020 season. The Saints moved from a top-five scoring offense in 2020 to 19th in the last two years. The Saints haven’t been able to find a long-term answer in Winston, Tesum Hill or Andy Dalton, and they probably weren’t going to find it in April with the 29th pick of the draft. The Saints clearly saw an opportunity to get one of the top quarterbacks on the market and Carr’s familiarity with Allen helped. Now that the Saints have a quarterback, they can focus on adding other offensive players in the draft.
Carr has always said positive things about Allen, who drafted and coached him before he was fired as head coach of the Raiders four games into the 2014 season.
“[Allen] and I still have a great relationship to this day,” Carr said before the Saints’ game last season against the Raiders. “And I still talk to her and things like that — obviously not on this week and all that stuff, but we’ve always been in touch, we’ve always been close. I love her, I love her.” is love.” -Katherine Terrell
What does this move mean for Jameis Winston?
This possibly signals the end of Winston’s time with the Saints. The organization has made it clear he’s been second fiddle more than once — playing Hill over Winston in 2020 when Brees was hurt, going after Deshaun Watson before re-signing Winston last offseason. and ultimately sticking with Dalton during the season. Winston is due $12.8 million in base salary in 2023, and $5.8 million guaranteed turns March 19. It is more likely that Winston would rather take a starting job with another organization than take a pay cut to be Carr’s backup. If Winston leaves, the Saints could try to re-sign Dalton as a backup. — Terrell
Does this move make the Saints the NFC South favorite?
The NFC South was a mediocre battle last season, with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers eventually winning the division at 8–9. With the retirement of quarterback Tom Brady in Tampa, it appears there is division for the Saints. The Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers are trying to sort out their quarterback situations and the Panthers also have a new head coach. If the defense can play like it did in the second half of last season, the Saints could become the team fans grew accustomed to from 2017 to 2020. – Terrell
Why did the Raiders decide to move on from Carr?
Carr had said that he would “probably” retire rather than play for a team other than the Raiders, but the writing was on the wall when general manager Dave Ziegler and coach Josh McDaniels benched him for the final two games of the season so that To be sure that he did not do so. Doesn’t hurt.
If Carr had been injured on the Raiders’ watch, Las Vegas would have been on the hook for over $40 million for 2023, and it was just a matter of time after that proved so uneventful. And Carr wanted out on his own terms. He has traditionally struggled in his first year in a new offensive system, and 2022 was no exception. His 60.8 completion percentage was his lowest since his rookie season.
His 14 interceptions the previous season tied for a career high, and his 3,522 passing yards were the third fewest of his nine-year career. Remember, the Saints got a first look at Carr’s struggles last season when he failed to cross the 50-yard line in the Superdome and threw for 101 yards completing 15 of 26 passes with one interception. Gave.
Sure, Carr holds nearly every career passing record in Raiders franchise history — 35,222 passing yards, 217 TD passes, 33 game-winning drives — but he also frustrated the team with so many checkdowns and fourth-down throwaway pass, 36. Lost career with fumbles. He was 63–79 as a starter with only two winning seasons and no playoff wins.
How does signing Carr early help free agency?
The Saints will likely support Carr on a reported four-year deal. New Orleans has entered every offense over the salary cap over the past decade but has worked by giving deals to players with a low first-year salary cap hit, which often increased significantly in the second and third years. The Saints then work around it by restructuring the contract at that point, often by converting the player’s base salary or built-in roster bonus into a signing bonus to spread out the cap hit to coincide with the league’s annual salary-cap bump. They will follow the same strategy as Carr to be able to remain competitive in 2023.
But with the Saints already leaving plenty of cap space to sign free agents, Carr will be the biggest in what will be another value signing class similar to 2022, when they signed Marcus Mays and Tyrann Mathieu and wide receiver Jarvis Landry. Put signature on. , Landry was injured for a large portion of the season, but perhaps the addition of Carr would entice a similar signing, as the Saints needed to add a receiver. Of course, the big question is whether Thomas stays or goes after the Saints renegotiated his contract in January, which seemed like the most likely way to fall apart. — Terrell
Where do the saints stand on the cap issue?
After starting the offseason more than $50 million over the anticipated 2023 cap, the Saints still need to shed $18 million to get under the salary cap. The Saints have already restructured the contracts of several players, with more to come, and may still make big moves, such as releasing Winston. The Saints have yet to touch the contracts of Cameron Jordan, Marshawn Lattimore, Andrus Peet, and Alvin Kamara. — Terrell
How does this move affect the rest of the QB market?
Carr’s reported $150 million contract with the Saints posts a great number for the rest of the quarterback market (though details on the deal structure will reveal the full picture). It’s a good marker for Geno Smith, who is in talks with the Seattle Seahawks. Questions remained about Carr’s market strength, but it appears to have been quite strong. It also helps Jimmy Garoppolo, who was considered the Saints’ backup plan and could be there for the Jets, should New York fail to land Aaron Rodgers. The Jets are focused on Rodgers, but his $58.3 million guaranteed in 2023 is still an issue for interested teams.