The Saints Should Trade for Derek Carr... There I Said It
Adam Schefter just broke the news the Raiders have granted Derek Carr permission to speak with other teams about a potential trade and the New Orleans Saints certainly look like one of the potential buyers.
But is that the right move for the Saints? Let's look at their options.
1) Are either Jameis Winston or Andy Dalton the answer?
NO and that is abundantly clear. Dalton is a free agent and could be brought back as a backup to compete for the job. Winston has a 15 million $ salary cap number and is going to get cut.
2) Do the Saints Draft a QB?
The Saints do have a 1st round pick after trading Sean Payton to the Denver Broncos earlier this week but it is a very late one (29th). The question is will there be a QB available at that point that could start on Day 1? This draft is not the strongest at QB and CJ Stroud, Bryce Young & Will Levis will be long gone.
The Saints look to be better off taking a guy like Tennessee's Hendon Hooker in the 2nd round to develop for the future.
3) What are the other Free Agent options?
Here is a list of the free agents at QB.
Geno Smith is most likely going to re-sign with Seattle after his break out season. Jimmy Garropolo is way way too injury prone to give big money. Daniel Jones and Lamar Jackson are not going to be allowed to hit the market.
Behind that, there is not much proven here. Do they take a flyer on Taylor Heinecke possibly? There is not much else to be excited about. No shot on Baker Mayfield.
The Saints SHOULD trade for Derek Carr. A lot of Saints fans are critical of giving up draft capital for Carr but would the Saints be able to sign him on the open market? The Saints are in salary cap hell as always. There are other suitors that could outbid them easily.
Carr was originally drafted by the Raiders when Dennis Allen was the head coach. They already have a relationship which is certainly a positive. Carr just got the Raiders to the playoffs a year ago. He is NOT THAT BAD.
Trading for Carr would not make the Saints a contender for the Super Bowl by any stretch of the imagination. But could they win a depleted NFC South? Certainly possible. Tampa, Carolina & Atlanta all have serious problems of their own and someone has to win the damn thing.
The Saints are in purgatory with older veterans on defense like Cam Jordan, DeMario Davis & Tyrann Mathieu all at the end of their prime, They are not going to tank with those guys on the roster.
Time to bite the bullet and make the move for Derek Carr. There are no better alternatives.
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