Derek Carr’s first season with the New Orleans Saints was not particularly successful.
Carr did not put up horrible stats. His stats really looked good, as he threw for 3,878 yards, 25 touchdowns, and eight interceptions while completing 68.4 percent of his throws and garnering a 97.7 passer rating.
However, the Saints finished 9-8 and missed the playoffs, and it was evident that Carr was not improving his receiving corps. He wasn’t making any major plays either.
Of course, this was not entirely Carr’s responsibility.
New Orleans did not have a strong offensive line, and their running game was quite bad. The squad also lacked depth in its receiving corps after Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed, which was mostly due to Michael Thomas’s recurrent injuries.
So, given the circumstances, Carr may have done well.
Still, given Carr’s contract (four years, $150 million), the Saints likely expected more.
The good news is that Carr is looking fantastic so far this summer.
Derek Carr has a new offensive coordinator.
According to Ross Jackson of Locked On Saints, New Orleans has hired Klint Kubiak to lead the offence, and it appears to be working well for Carr thus far.
Of all, these are simply structured team activities, and Carr, as a seasoned veteran, should do well regardless of who calls the plays.
However, given how uneventful and fairly uninteresting the 2023 season was for the Saints, this is at least a bright spot moving into next season.
The question is whether New Orleans did enough to provide him with adequate skill over the last few months.
Due to financial constraints, the Saints were unable to do much in free agency. Their greatest move was signing edge rusher Chase Young, but they didn’t add much offence for Carr. They signed wide receiver Cedrick Wilson Jr., but he only had 296 receiving yards in 2023.
Perhaps the most significant move for New Orleans was picking offensive lineman Taliese Fuaga in the first round, which will help shore up what was a weak offensive line last season.
We’ll see if Derek Carr can have a more successful second season in the Bayou.
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