Matt Johnson
New Orleans Saints quarterback Derek Carr is now trending towards playing on Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after suffering an AC joint injury in Week 3.
Carr suffered a shoulder injury against the Green Bay Packers, leaving the game and not returning. New Orleans listed him as week-to-week, with an expectation that he would at least miss one game.
- Derek Carr stats 2023: 65.5% completion rate, 2-2 TD-INT, 636 passing yards, 85.2 quarterback rating, 7.3 yards per attempt
After missing the first two days of practice this week, Carr worked in a limited practice session on Friday. Listed as questionable for Sunday’s game on the Saints’ injury report, it now appears as if Carr might take the field.
According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, there’s now optimism that Carr will start against the Buccaneers. The Saints’ coaching staff wants to do a final evaluation of Carr before the game and ensure he can protect himself, but things are headed in the right direction. Soon after that report, Rapoport confirmed that Carr indeed would make the start for the team on Sunday against the Buccaneers.
While Carr was sidelined at practice this week, backup quarterback Jameis Winston handled all the first-team reps. Entering NFL games today, Winston had a 92.1 QB rating with an 18-8 TD-INT ratio and a 61.1% completion rate as the Saints’ quarterback.
- Derek Carr contract: $7.2 million cap hit in 2023, $35.7 million cap hit in 2024, $45.7 million cap hit in 2025
While New Orleans might have Carr and Alvin Kamara on the field for the first time this season, its offense will still be short-handed. Starting right guard Cesar Ruiz is out for Sunday, forcing backup Nick Saldiveri into the lineup.
If Winston is the Saints’ starting quarterback against Tampa Bay, expect a lot of short, quick throws. After averaging 7.7 yards per attempt with a 3.5% interception rate in 72 career games with the Buccaneers, Winston’s YPA and interception rate have dropped in New Orleans.
