Derek Carr's retirement is now official and the Saints QB has also given some insight into what went into the stunning decision to end his NFL career after 11 seasons.
In an interview with Front Office Sports, the now-former Saints QB spoke publicly for the first time about why he chose the retirement route and to forgo $30 million he was set to receive from New Orleans next season.
“That part was tough because I didn’t want to have surgery and just sit there and — it sounds crazy but — just take the Saints money,” Carr said in the report.
The statement does mirror what the information released from the Saints in announcing Carr's decision, which was driven largely by a shoulder injury that was discovered late in the offseason. The team announced that the injury was a torn labrum and degenerative issues in the QB's rotator cuff. Carr had injections in the shoulder and attempted to rehab, but opted against surgery that wasn't guaranteed to fully repair the issue.
The decision, which was met with rampant skepticism that there wasn't more to the story, brought to an end a protracted offseason saga between player and team that reportedly included rebuffed attempts from both sides to solve the issue with either a paycut, trade or outright release. The Saints opted to restructure Carr's deal, effectively guaranteeing that additional $31 million, prior to the news of the injury. With his retirement the Saints will get that money back, but Carr does retain a $10 million signing bonus that vested in March. The Saints do still have a significant cap burden to clear relative to Carr, but the decision to hold off until after June 1 to make the retirement official allows the team to split that over two seasons. That helps the Saints operate this season, but means they'll have to navigate another dead cap hit in 2026 before they are free and clear of the contract.
Carr's 2-year run as Saints QB will not be remembered as a success. He retires with a 14-13 record and did lead the team to a 9-8 finish in 2023, but his final campaign was marred by a pair of injuries and limited to 10 games. The Saints lost all 7 games he missed and finished 5-12, with then-head coach Dennis Allen fired after the final game of a 7-game losing streak.
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While there's been significant buzz surrounding the idea that Carr's career might not be done and he could potentially make a comeback with another team, Carr himself has shot that idea down directly. He did tell FOH that coaching or broadcasting could be in the cards.
“My agent literally texted me a few days ago and he said, ‘Hey, just checking it in. How’s everything? You still feel comfortable with the decision?’ And I sent him a picture of me on the beach with my two kids playing," he told FOH. "And I said, ‘This beats an OTA any day.’ "
The Saints have opted to go forward with a youth movement at the position, drafting Tyler Shough out of Louisville at No. 40 overall and signing UDFA Hunter Dekkers after a tryout, but otherwise have avoided adding to the position. New head coach Kellen Moore has made it clear that the competition for the starting QB role will be between Shough, Rattler and another former draft pick in Jake Haener, who is returning for a third NFL season.
New Orleans is conducting its third set of OTAs this week, which will be followed by a minicamp, then a month break before the start of the full training camp in late July.