The mystery is over: Derek Carr will start at quarterback for the Saints in Week 14 after clearing the concussion protocol for the second time in less than a month.
Carr was limited in the first two practices of the week but was a full participant on Friday and has since been cleared by the independent neurologist, the final step in the process before being cleared to play.
“I have felt better, but I’m doing great, that’s for sure," Carr said in a pool report conducted by NOLA.com.
Carr said the process was similar the second time around after first suffering a concussion in a Week 10 loss to the Vikings, followed by the Saints' bye week. The QB was back in action in Week 11, a loss to the Falcons, but left early in the 4th quarter after a hard hit from Bruce Irvin that was flagged for a personal foul. Carr is also dealing with rib and shoulder issues, the latter stemming from an injury earlier in the season, but head coach Dennis Allen had indicated earlier in the week that neither was likely to prevent him from playing.
“I don’t really have any concerns," Carr said. "I did some extra tests and things like that this week, just checking on things. Our doctors and the non-affiliated doctor said everything was perfect, they showed me the results in comparison to things. I do not have any worries on that stuff. It didn’t feel like the two were even related to one another. So, for me, that’s just sometimes the price of doing business and playing football. So no concern on that part, long-term or short-term. Fully confident that I can be alright playing with that part of it.”
The next question will be whether the Saints offense can buck the trend of slow starts, which was particularly difficult to overcome in a 33-28 loss to the Lions that featured a 21-0 hole at the end of the first quarter. Carr's first pass of the game bounced off tight end Juwan Johnson's hands for an interception, with the Lions going in for a touchdown a few plays later. The Saints managed just one first down across their next three possessions.
The Saints were on the comeback trail after back-to-back long touchdown drives to start the third quarter, but had that derailed with a fumble to start a potential go-ahead drive. The Lions quickly scored and Carr was injured on the next possession, a drive finished off for a touchdown by Jameis Winston. Carr didn't speak after the game, per the concussion protocol.
"We ran one play and the ball ends up in their hands and no one ever plans on that happening ... Stuff happens. Balls get tipped up, all that kind of stuff," Carr said. "But we never lost confidence on the next drive. We knew we had a great plan, we were seeing the things we wanted to see. Sometimes it takes a second for those plays to start clicking and for us to start executing at a high level. We started doing that and thankfully we did, because if it kept going the other way it would’ve been a really rough day.”
Carr and Winston split practice reps throughout the week and preparation was somewhat impacted by the injuries, but Carr said he feels comfortable with where he's at in that regard as he heads into the first rematch of the season against the 1-11 Panthers. It's been a struggle for Carolina that's resulted in the firing of their first-year head coach, but the Panthers still feature a top-10 defense that the Saints will have to solve without several playmakers. WRs Chris Olave (thigh) and Rashid Shaheed (thigh), and tight end Taysom Hill (hand/foot) are all questionable for the game.
The Saints have lost three consecutive games and likely can't afford another loss if they intend to keep pace with the Falcons and Bucs in the NFC South.
"We want to make sure that if we start fast, we don’t have to worry about all of that other stuff happening," Carr said. "This place has been great to me since I got here, and that’s not going to change. I’m as frustrated as they were in that moment, but at the end of the day, we know what we’re doing, we’re working hard and we’re getting better. We’ve just got to get some wins.”
