The New Orleans Saints have some matters to address when it comes to the quarterback position after it was reported that Derek Carr is dealing with a shoulder injury that could (or could not) require surgery.
Some NFL insiders seem to think that the reports of an injury, which appear to have come from Carr's camp as opposed to sources within the Saints' organization, is a smokescreen to put pressure on the team.
Speaking during her Scoop City podcast, Diana Russini of The Athletic called the situation "fishy."
"Maybe this is Derek Carr looking at the situation going, 'I don't want the Kirk Cousins treatment. I don't want to be your quarterback.' You guys draft a young guy and it's basically, 'When is this guy going to play?'" Russini said.
Russini noted that it's a "fact" that the Saints are "on a mission" to draft a quarterback in the 2025 draft, though she didn't specify what round they were hoping to make a splash in.
"I did have a lot of text messages and conversations over the last few days about the Derek Carr situation and it was very hard for me to find someone in football who said, 'Oh, Derek's definitely dealing with a serious shoulder injury.' It was, 'How long have you been doing this? You know what this is about.' Trade Bait. End of the day, that's what this is about," Russini said.
Carr's contract was restructured by the Saints during the offseason, converting $28.7 million of his $30 million base salary into a signing bonus, though that reportedly occurred without his blessing. It's possible that he's unhappy with the hand he's been dealt in the offseason and is hoping to get back at the team by airing out his injury news.
Interestingly, Russini wasn't the only insider thinking there's more to the story. Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk said on his podcast that he thinks the report of the injury was a "chess move" on the part of Carr.
"I feel like this was not a boating accident to have this come out when it did, 13 days before the draft,” Florio said. “Like, did he just wake up on Friday and say, ‘Oh, oh my arm, it’s broken?' No, no. I doubt that he had no idea.”
"I don't think this was a coincidence. I think he knew he was injured, and I think we all found out about it 13 days before the Saints are going to take Shedeur Sanders, and I think at some level he hopes it's going to screw up their ability to take Shedeur Sanders," said Florio.
In short, it's widely expected that the Saints will, at some point, select a quarterback in this month's draft. And although Carr is under contract through the 2026 season, whatever quarterback they draft would be his likely successor. By making public the news of his shoulder injury, which could shut him down for the season, Carr may be trying to pressure the Saints into committing to him in 2025, or, if not, encouraging them to try to offload him in the offseason.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as NFL Insiders Think Derek Carr's Shoulder Injury Is 'Fishy' As Saints Mull Drafting QB.
