Drew Brees understands the parallels that people are going to draw between his arrival in 2006, and Derek Carr's in 2023.
But there's one key difference, Brees said this week, and it's a check in the new Saints QB's column.
"He’s much more of a seasoned veteran than I was when I came here," Brees said while making his annual appearance at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. "And obviously I was coming off the injury and there were a lot of unknowns and a lot of uncertainties. I think for him, first off, I think leaving the situation that he was in and getting a fresh start was going to be a good thing anyway."
The Saints are hoping that proves to be the case for Carr, who spent his first nine seasons with the Raiders and made four Pro Bowls but left with a career record of 63-79 and just one playoff start.
Quarterback in New Orleans has been a revolving door since Brees suffered a thumb injury in Week 2 of the 2019 season. It hasn't slowed down since his retirement following the 2020 season.
Here is a list of Saints QB (non-playoff) starts dating back to Week 1 of 2019:
- Drew Brees: 23 (17-6)
- Andy Dalton: 14 (6-8)
- Jameis Winston: 10 (6-4)
- Taysom Hill: 9 (7-2)
- Teddy Bridgewater: 5 (5-0)
- Trevor Siemian: 4 (0-4)
- Ian Book: 1 (0-1)
Should Carr start all 17 games in 2023, it'd mark a welcome end to the backup QB trend. And Brees says he is fully onboard with the decision, for a few reasons.
“I think it’s a great move for him and the organization. … I’ve always had a lot of respect for him. I’ve always thought he was a fairly underrated player, probably didn’t get the respect that he deserved," Brees said. "Obviously was in a tough situation there with the Raiders based on a lot of the things that have happened there the last few years, and I think he kind of caught the brunt of that unfairly, and I think you shoulder a lot of that burden as the quarterback anyway."
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Familiarity with Jon Gruden's system -- which is similar to what the Saints will run with Pete Carmichael -- is a clear advantage. He'll have weapons in Alvin Kamara, Michael Thomas, Chris Olave and others, with the only question being availability due to either health or suspension. He'll have a top-tier defense behind him.
But most importantly, at 32 years old, Carr is in a position to maximize the mental part of his game while still being able to play at the top level physically. It's a point that many careers don't get to, but one that Brees and other greats navigated to with great success. Could Carr join them with a successful Saints career, Brees seems to think so.
"I think [the Saints are] going to be well positioned to make a run at it,” he continued.
Time will tell.
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