The Las Vegas Raiders wanted to trade Derek Carr this offseason but once he made it clear he would not waive the no-trade clause on his contract, they had no choice but release him. Carr is now free to sign with any team he pleases and he will have no shortage of suitors.
The former Fresno State Bulldog isn’t an upper-echelon quarterback but he’s shown he can play at a high level if he’s given a solid supporting cast. So what are the best landing spots for him? Here’s a ranking of the five best.
No. 5 potential landing spot for Derek Carr in 2023 – Indianapolis Colts
After a lengthy search, the Indianapolis Colts chose Shane Steichen as their head coach. Steichen was the offensive coordinator for the Philadelphia Eagles the last two years and turned heads for his work with Jalen Hurts and Gardner Minshew to a lesser degree. Indy doesn’t currently have a long-term answer at quarterback and finding one will be one of their top priorities this offseason.
Carr would add stability at quarterback from the get-to and would allow Colts general manager Chris Ballard to address other position needs. Having said that, it’s uncertain if the veteran quarterback would like to be part of a rebuild.
Steichen might manage to right the ship but Indianapolis doesn’t have enough pieces in place to realistically compete for a playoff spot, which could potentially put Carr under unnecessary pressure to perform.
Things can change from one year to another in the NFL landscape and the Colts could turn out to be pretty good in 2024. But for the time being, they don’t look like an appealing destination for Carr.
No. 4 potential landing spot for Derek Carr in 2023 – New Orleans Saints
The Raiders wanted to shop Derek Carr but the no-trade clause on his contract complicated things substantially. On paper, this approach makes sense, as it restricted his ability to potentially arrange deals without the knowledge of the organization. In practice, this limited their number of realistic trade partners.
Carr ended up meeting only New Orleans Saints and he told Las Vegas after the visit that he wouldn’t be waiving his no-trade clause. The Saints can now pursue Carr without having to compensate the Raiders and they have a head start. The only thing that might hold them back is their limited amount of cap space. They’re currently $55 million in the red and will need to restructure several contracts and shed a few others just to get under the cap.
Working in New Orleans’ favor is that general manager Mickey Loomis has always found a way to land players he likes in spite of the cap and would surely find a way to fit Carr into the team’s budget. One thing that could convince the veteran quarterback to sign with the Saints is that he would be playing under Dennis Allen, his head coach in his rookie season.
On the other hand, New Orleans is undergoing a soft reboot and will have to address several roster holes, such as wide receiver. Chris Olave is coming off a productive rookie season but Michael Thomas didn’t play a snap last year and isn’t probably the same player he was in his prime. As a matter of fact, he could be a cap casualty.
Then again, the Saints had a pretty good defense (9th points allowed, 5th in total yards) last season, something Carr never truly had with the Raiders.
No. 3 potential landing spot for Derek Carr in 2023 – Washington Commanders
From a PR perspective, signing Derek Carr would be a massive hit for the Washington Commanders. More often than not, they make the headlines for the wrong reasons. Whether it’s owner Dan Snyder’s questionable leadership or the baffling decision to honor the late Sean Taylor with a wire mannequin, the Commanders would surely like to have a quarterback of Carr’s caliber and make the news for their on-field performance.
Make no mistake, the Washington roster isn’t devoid of talent; they have playmakers on both sides of the ball and Carr could propel them to the playoffs. Their defensive line is one of the best in the league and they will be in great shape even if they aren’t able to re-sign Daron Payne in the offseason. On offense, they have a talented trio of wide receivers in Terry McLaurin, Curtis Samuel, and Jahan Dotson.
Moreover, the Commanders have a solid backfield tandem in Brian Robinson and Antonio Gibson. If the latter can rediscover the magic he had in his rookie season, he would give Washington a lethal running back combo.
Leaving aside the Commanders’ roster, the presence of defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio might be intriguing to Carr. Del Rio was his head coach from 2015 to 2017 and had the best stretch of his NFL career under him. Of course, Del Rio is in charge of the defense but some semblance of familiarity could convince Carr to sign with Washington.
Last but not least, head coach Ron Rivera will most likely enter the season on the hot seat and could get the boot if he doesn’t win enough in 2023. This could lead to an aggressive pursuit of Carr, who would automatically be the best quarterback he’s had since getting the job in 2019.
No. 2 potential landing spot for Derek Carr in 2023 – New York Jets
All things considered, the New York Jets seemed to have gotten it right when they hired Robert Saleh as their head coach in 2021. Saleh took over a team with no direction and had them on the brink of earning a playoff berth last season. General manager Joe Douglas has replenished the roster over the last two seasons but the Jets are still missing a quarterback.
New York drafted Zach Wilson second overall thinking he could develop into a franchise quarterback. Unfortunately, that didn’t turn out to be the case. Besides showing poor leadership skills, the former BYU Cougar was benched in favor of Mike White. To make matters worse, Rich Cimini of ESPN reports that assistant Rex Hogan and offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur were higher on Wilson than Trevor Lawrence during the draft process.
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It’s hard to envision Wilson being the Week 1 starter based on how things played out last year. In fact, the Jets have already begun to explore the possibility of trading for Aaron Rodgers, who would be a massive upgrade at quarterback and would immediately make them a playoff contender.
The downside of acquiring Rodgers is that New York would need to most likely part ways with premium compensation, possibly high draft picks or a core player. Meanwhile, the Jets would only need to make a competitive offer to Carr. They have enough weapons on both sides of the ball to compete for a playoff berth in a somewhat weak AFC East.
No. 1 potential landing spot for Derek Carr in 2023 – Carolina Panthers
The Carolina Panthers pushed the reset button when they fired Matt Rhule in the middle of the 2022 season. While interim head coach Steven Wilks proved to be a more than capable replacement and should have gotten the job on a full-time basis, the Panthers ultimately went with Frank Reich, who is no consolation prize.
It’s true that Reich’s tenure with the Indianapolis Colts didn’t finish on a good note but will have a chance to start from scratch in Carolina. Back in Indy, he squeezed one good season out of an aging Philip Rivers and got the most out of Jacoby Brissett when Andrew Luck unexpectedly retired just before the start of the 2019 regular season.
One of Reich’s biggest mistakes in Indianapolis was pounding the table for Carson Wentz and believing he could turn him back into the quarterback he was early in his career. At this point in their respective careers, Carr is better than either Wentz or Matt Ryan, the Colts’ starting quarterback last season. In fact, Carr would be the most talented signal-caller Reich has worked with since Luck.
The Panthers have put together an All-Star staff. Besides hiring Reich, they brought in Duce Staley as their running backs coach and assistant head coach. Jim Caldwell will be their offensive coordinator and Ejiro Evero will oversee their defense. If they can somehow sign Carr, they will have a realistic shot at winning the NFC South in Reich’s first year at the helm.