Derek Carr’s Retirement: What Really Happened & What’s Next in NOLA? | Saints with Nick Underhill

Thunderhill from New Orleans. Football to talk Saints. Nick, good morning. Thank you for joining us. Hey, how's it going, guys? Doing good. Doing good. Uh, obviously we'll start with the the biggest news of them all. On Saturday morning, announcement was made that Derek Carr is retiring. Um, what does that mean for the Saints? Um, obviously more than just, you know, kind of a fresh start at the quarterback spot, but into the cap room and all of that. Kind of what's next for the Saints after that? Well, yeah. I mean, first of all, they're free. I mean, this this is this is done now and uh they can move forward and you know, I think it just feels better. I think it feels I think it feels more hopeful than it than it ever has really around here. And they might end up being a really bad team. Um but if they are bad and you feel like you have some type of momentum, kind of it really comes down to to three spots. If if Tali Fuaga's good, if Kelvin Banks is good, and if Shuck shows you anything, I think you could win three, four games and end the season and feel like you're on the the right path. And if you aren't on the the right path, you'll be in position to go and make another move. And I think that's kind of the beauty of drafting the guy Tyler Shucket 40. I don't think the commitment is so strong there that you are embedded into this in a way where it's like, well, if it doesn't work in year one, you have to try again in year two. I I think you can go right back to the water and and try again from there. Um, but he he's shown some good things. I I think physically everything is there. uh you know he's he's 6'5. He moves really well. He throws uh a good football. He's got good velocity on his passes. He's got a good arm. He can throw from various platforms. He can he could throw on the move. He looks more athletic in in one practice than we've seen at this position um in a long time for the Saints. But it's all going to come down to when when the live bullets start flying and when he's under pressure and if he's able to stand in there and make the throws and not throw the ball away and and not get into bad situations, which is what you saw happen at Louisville. So, that's to be determined. We're going to see it in the games, but uh you know, for now, it it feels like what happened with this car situation to me it felt like a three-year eject. Like last year was was kind of all right, like they're going to start tearing down a little bit. They aren't really going to add to it. All the signings are going to be one-year deals. They're going to be cap conscious. And this year, there were two paths. It was you do a June 2nd cut with Derek Carr, which means you got to carry all the money on the books until June 2nd, which means there's no Justin Reed. There's no Jawan Johnson. There's no Chase Young. You probably aren't getting Cam Jordan to take a pay cut. You probably aren't getting Tyron Matthew to take a pay cut. Um cuz those guys would want to leave. So like everything they did this off season wouldn't have been possible cuz there would have been no cap space or there was option B. You restructure them. You keep them on the team for a year. You keep building your team. You do all these other things and then a year from now you get rid of them. Somehow they got A and B in the same package which is unbelievable. Uh they did the restructure and now he's going to retire on June 2nd and you're going to get all the cap benefit. 19 million dead this year, 31 million dead next year, instead of the whole thing being on your books until June 2nd, which is is crazy to me because this was contentious. Like, it ended in a good way. It ended in a in a in a very in a very amicable departure. I, you know, I might have my Tim Foil hat on, but I kind of feel like he's probably going to play football again. And I think it's probably agreed upon that when he's ready, they're just going to let his rights go and he's going to be able to go get back the $30 million, you go your way, we go our way, and uh everything's all good. I I think that's probably what actually happened behind closed doors. But who cares? Like, I don't think anyone here is going to be pissed off if if Derek Carr goes and plays football for the Jets or whoever, you know, in August, a year from now, whatever it is. I think everyone's just going to be like, "All right, man. Good luck. Like, glad glad you're out of here. Like, go do your thing." I don't think it's going to be like the Shawn Peyton thing, like how could he go do this? I don't think anyone cares. Like I think I think Derek goes and it's all good. I I do tend to agree with you that what happened behind closed doors is probably not the story that we were sold because it would have been the first time it felt like any good business had been done on both sides. It felt like you said very contentious. So is there a reason to like even dig any more into that as if it would have been a he said, she said where if Derek Carr didn't retire in this manner then the Saints would have pursued legal action? I think that's probably what would have happened. I mean, I I the whole time I kind of felt like everybody was playing it quiet because they they wanted to figure it out and nobody wanted to say anything that that kind of sparked a like a highle feud. Uh it just felt very careful. Even even the the release, if you read it, um let me see if I can pull it up real quick. I even thought the wording in that was kind of was kind of wild. Uh like it just felt like very um Yeah, here it is. eventually medical scans determined objectively that Derek sustained a laboral tear and also had significant whatever like objectively concluded like I I've never I've never seen phrasing like that in a release. It just felt like very much like yeah that and like very much a PR move like okay hey look we're going to do this but you have to make sure nobody like you have to come out and say nobody was lying about anything was on the up and up all that like and look I think Derek did get scans and he probably does have a have an injury he's been playing football for a long time he's injured that shoulder multiple times you know I still think in the end it and I could be wrong I'm not saying I'm right I'm just saying my personal feeling as I sit here as a sane and hopefully sane and logical human is that like this still does not look right and normal like it still looks like something something was a little bit off and and if he injured his right shoulder diving in the last game he played and then doesn't go out and throw again in March that alone to me doesn't make sense to me. It doesn't make sense to me that there was a report that he was able to throw a lighter ball in practice. Okay, fine. Like you could do that and you could do that. You know, it just doesn't make sense. It doesn't make sense to me. But okay, you tried to throw a ball. Let's let's say let's say you tried to do that and it didn't work and it hurt. So you waited 3 months to go test your shoulder again. Like when I have a cavity, like I'm putting my tongue in it like all day long to see if it still hurts. You know what I mean? Like like everybody does that. Like, oh man, I sprained my ankle. Let me test it out today. Like oh no, it's not okay. Like you're an NFL quarterback and you hurt your shoulder and you wait three months. Like maybe you did. Maybe you just wanted to get away from the game. Maybe maybe it's all true. But like I think I think as we all sit here today, it's just like wow that that's a peculiar way to handle that. Like I just you know he might have done it that way. I'm not calling him a liar. I'm not saying it didn't happen. I'm just saying I think it's fair and logical to be like damn like that's really how this played out. That doesn't make a whole lot of sense. Just really give up the game when I'm not playing it. Like no not interesting. I mean he's Dan Revolki said this yesterday. He's like you have three sons. You didn't go throw the ball around one time like Yeah. bad dude. Like when when I when I get like when I get CO before like I've had it like 80 times now like when I first get it I'm like oh like I got the the thing the two lines come up and like I go I'm like can I still smell? Okay, I can still smell. And like I'm testing it like yeah that smells right. I got that. And then like when you lose your smell like I'm sniffing like sticks of deodorant like like put my nose in the freze thing like yeah just to see if it works. Like just man okay I got nothing here. Damn it's still gone. Like I'm not waiting like well I guess you know I guess I'll see. It's like I'm worried about it. Yeah. Like I'm worried about it all day long. It doesn't So it's just I I I don't know. That's how I operate. I don't know if the way I operate is the same as everybody else. But like when something's wrong I'm like, "Oh man, let me let me see. Let me see. When will it be better?" Yeah. No, I mean that's a that's a good point. What was what was your level of surprise when you heard that this was the the end of the s like this was how it was ending? How surprised were you? Yeah, I was I was super surprised. Actually, I got a I got a text that morning at at like 6:18 in the morning and like immediately I woke everybody up that worked for me. I'm sure they were all very happy about that. I'm like, "Yo, I think this is going down today." Like, I didn't know it was retirement. I thought they were going to cut him. I actually heard on I think it was like Monday or Tuesday and the thing happened on on Saturday. Monday, Tuesday, I I thought it was going to happen. We like wrote our stories like we're all ready. I I thought he was going to get cut then and then it it it didn't happen and then Saturday morning I got a text like antenna up 6:18 in the morning. I wake everybody up. Um like we're all trying to work on it. I I didn't think it was going to break though until after practice cuz they had rookie camp that day. I was like well there's no way this is going to come out until until like 2:00 and then I don't know what time it was about like 9:30 someone called me and they're like yo you like go with it is good. It's like break it break it. So, like we broke the story about not there, but I was I was shocked. Like I was sitting there like, "Oh my god, like he's retiring." We had heard retirement like once like a month ago. Mhm. And I thought it was just like posturing like ah he's like he's going to try to threaten retirement like as in either you're going to like let me go or I'm going to retire and all this money is going to hit you hit your books. Like you know I thought it was a a posturing thing. I didn't think it was like a real possibility. And then and then to find out like he gave the 30 million back. That's the that's the craziest part of this because if you got hurt diving like that like you're entitled to that money like you that is a football injury sustained on the field. That is your money. Your career has been interrupted. Um it's guaranteed. Giving that back is is is wild. Like that is a a wild thing to do. Um he could have he could have pressed this as far as he wanted. Maybe maybe you win, maybe you don't. But like there was 30 million on the line and just to walk away from it, feel however you want about him. Feel like whatever he did him a solid even if it was just to to like not have to go through a process, not to have this hanging over everything like that is a clean clean eject. Yeah. And I and I think if you're that's what makes me think he's going to play again because if it would have been this this back and forth affair between the Saints and it was when did you get hurt, how did you get hurt, like that hurts his credibility if he wants to play again. Instead, it's a clean retirement. Then the comeback tour is on and people like, "Oh, he did the right thing. Look how much he works with the team. Look how good this went." Like, and and that immediately helps him in the PR for whatever team he goes to next. Yeah, there's no doubt. I I think that that's the settlement here is that who like if Derrick wants to play again, I'm not saying he is. I'm not saying he is. I I think I think, you know, again, this is just just looking at it like a logical person. I I don't know anything, but it to me it would feel like the settlement here is okay if Derek wants to play again. Just you you got to relinquish his rights and we'll give back this 30 million and everybody walks away and and I'm sure like that's a great that's a great resolution. Um you got the benefit of having the money for the off season, he goes away. Uh you know, they really did want to keep him. They really did want him to be their quarterback this year. Kell Moore really did like envision this season with him as the quarterback. That really was the plan. Um but it works, you know. I think I think it works out great. Like it, like I said, I I thought it was a three-year thing and like it accelerates year two to year three like together. Um, you know, so I I think they're in a great place. I'm I'm happy that they're rebuilding this thing. I think the whole thing kind of got forced a little bit. I don't think any of this was done like willingly. Uh, you know, firing DA isn't what they wanted to do. Getting rid of the quarterback isn't what they wanted to do. Both those things end up happening and it just feels like they're in it feels like a fresh start. Kell Moore, Tyler Shuck, no baggage. really feels like this is the first year of like a brand new identity since Shawn left and and you know I think it's it's very badly needed and I think the fans are ready for it too. Like I think they're ready to sit through a four- win season and I think they'll be happier about four than they would seven or eight with Derek. It's unbelievable how Mickey Lumis stumbles into what exactly what everybody wanted him to do and it just happened by happen stance. Like none of this was him making decisions on like he didn't want to fire Da. He wanted to bring back Derek Carr and then neither of those things happened. The Saints fan base is like, "Oh, thank God they're making all the right moves again." And it's like this just happened. It fell right in his lap. Yeah. And when you go there's an argu there's an argument though like like I don't think it was illogical to to restructure him and be like, "Hey, look like we're going to do this in a two-year process." It's like you can't really like getting out of it right now is kind of was kind of would have been like it's it's you're losing your ability to do anything and you're letting everything kind of crumble into place and then you get rid of Derek and then that you know you don't have any money to do anything at all. You don't have Yeah. You can't support your quarterback at all. Like you aren't even be able to bring in like Donovan Peoples Jones probably like is you're just so hamstrung by everything. So, I I always thought like a two-year release, like sort of like how Denver did it with with Russell was the thing that was going to end up making the most sense, but I don't think they were planning on keeping Derrick beyond this season. I think this was the the last this was like, okay, going to have him here, going to go through this season, and then a year from now, he's gone. I think that was it. And I I think very obviously that's why Derrick was freaking out is he knew it, too. I think he was very much aware that he was on a lame duck one-year deal. And that's why he was pressing so hard to get out of here cuz he knew he knew he was finished and that, you know, people coming in looked at him as a temporary situation. They weren't really going to care about, you know, building it around him or or doing what's right by him. It was just a means to an end. Um, but yeah, I mean, look, they this is this is a circumstance, not a plan. This is a circumstance, not a plan. And it worked out great. They got backed into a corner. I will give them a lot of credit because they could have panicked. They could have they could have reacted to the noise. They could have done a lot of different things in this situation and they just kind of said, "You know what? Just going to stand there and stare you down and and and is going to fold." And uh you know, Mickey won this standoff. I mean, there's no doubt about it. And uh I will give him credit for that. It wasn't it wasn't a planned standoff. It was you know, a gun was kind of pointed at him and he managed to be the one to to to win that that home invasion really. And uh credit to him. I mean, he he got he got this one done somehow. I don't know how he did it. He pulled a rabbit out of the hat though. No doubt. Go ahead. Shoot. Cuz it looked bad. It looked bad, right? Yeah. It looked like Derek It looked like Derrick was leaving town with 30 million and he was never going to play quarterback again. And I think the last time two weeks ago I was on here was like just let him go. Give him the money. Who cares? Like just get him out of here. Like get this guy. Like if I was running the team, I would have made the bad decision of being like like f it. Give him the 30 million. Get him out of here. Like screw this guy. Um I would have folded. I would have folded%. I would have got my I would have got Gail Benson robbed. Gail Benson would have got robbed of $30 million if I was the GM. No doubt about it. Like Derek had the Saints in his back pocket. Like he was fully in control of the situation and it just got flipped on its head in like a second. The hostage. Yes. Unbelievable. Dropped the gun. No doubt. No doubt. Like I I I there's no way I would have won that. Like I would have not got the $30 million. I would have just been I would have been so frustrated. Like you know what? He's out of here. Like I I don't care. Take the money. Just go be gone. I don't ever want to see you again. Get out of town. Leave town. Like that would have that would have been me. I absolutely negotiate with terrorists. Like here, take it. Sit back and watch this drive. Watch this drive. Um, what are your obviously, you know, moving away from car, it's Tyler Shuck's team now. It seems he'll be the guy. He's done all the right things. He's been pressing all the right buttons. He's going and eating at at Drago and taking the picture. He's got Lil Wayne on every Instagram post. Um, you know, he's doing the whole deal. He he he's he's nailing the PR standpoint up to this point, right? Oh, no question about it. Yeah. No, he he's he's doing everything right. Um, you know, I like him. I we we met him last week. Um, you know, the age I I think is is a is a benefit. Um, you know, you guys you guys are around college age people all the time. Like 21 year olds are idiots. like 25 year olds are a little bit, you know, you're probably still an idiot, but like you're aware of that that you're an idiot and you're trying not to be an idiot. You know what I mean? Like there's like a significant maturity difference like between 20 21 and 25 26. Like there just is. And you know, him coming in, you see it, you feel it talking to him, he just feels like he carries himself like like a more adult person. And uh you know, I think that's good. I think it's a good thing. Um I think it makes him a little bit, you know, ready to handle this situation, take it in stride. I don't think it's your your typical, you know, the weight of the world on a 21-year-old versus the weight of a of a whole team on a 25-year-old. I think it's a little bit different even though they're both only been in the NFL for for two weeks. But I think just mentally, maturity, all that stuff. I think he's ready to handle his station in in life in a way that that, you know, maybe maybe a younger guy wouldn't. So, that's good. Uh the off the field, all that. Look, I I like that he's smart enough to game plan everything. if he's smart enough to game plan the the song on an IG post, he's going to be smart enough to game plan for the Arizona Cardinals when they play him. Like, it's smart. It's just a smart way to do things. Um, you know, just knowing the situation, knowing what you got to do. Uh, you know, reading Derek Carr's mistakes in the media and doing the opposite, like that's smart. Like, it's just it's just a guy that that's that's thought about everything. So, uh, you know, I I I like him. I like how he's carrying himself and I like how he's how he's coming into the situation. And when you you mentioned the age as being a benefit even that it does sound like it is and it's going to be because you've seen more like you've seen older quarterbacks come to the league and have success right away, but do you think that they still are looking at a position of maybe they get a veteran quarterback to kind of lead him through this this gauntlet of a rookie year? Because it's always it's if you have somebody that wants to kind of show you how it's done or have somebody in that room, it can only be a benefit. Yeah, I I agree. I mean, it's kind of something that I would I would look at. I don't think it's a must because like there's a weird amount of of quarterback experience on, you know, Kell Moore is young and he he was an NFL quarterback. They got uh Toli and he he's a quarterback. Nusmire quarterback. Uh there's a lot of guys on the staff that that have played the position that you can learn from. But I I do think it's different. Those are the bosses. I I think it's different when when you can turn to a co-orker and and maybe ask them a question and not feel, you know, just naturally you feel judged when you go to your your boss and ask them questions. there's a, you know, you carry yourself different when when the suits are around. It's just, it's just the way it is. So, yeah, I I I would look into it. I would I kind of feel like it's something that they need to do. Um, Bridgewwater. Teddy Bridgewwater. I think Teddy's getting ready to win uh that that that state title again. He's recruiting, but maybe in December. But I I do think I do think no matter everything they do from this point forward should be about developing Tyler Shuck. And if you feel like he's the future of your team and you drafted him at 40, so you feel like he's at least got a better shot at that than anybody else, I I think every single thing you do for your organization for the rest of this year should be about trying to make sure it works with him. And if that means trading someone to get him the right the perfect backup, if it means trading someone to get, you know, the a wide receiver, spending money to get one, whatever it is, I I think you put his development over the development of the offensive line. I've made this argument that, you know, I think longterm, obviously, Banks left, Waga, right? Natural positions are the best things for him, and you want to get him to those spots as quickly as possible, but I think for this year, if Trevor Penning is one of your best five, you you're willing to put him out there and put Bank somewhere else and Fuaga somewhere else just to make sure that Shak has the cleanest possible possible because that's going to be the thing that helps him develop and succeed in the short term. So everything you do I think needs to be putting him first above everybody else because nothing is more important than figuring out how you win with with the quarterback. If if Shuck doesn't go at 42 the Saints where do you think he gets drafted? I think quickly quickly after I mean look I I I know Mel Kyper and everybody else had had different had different rankings. Um I think we know where Mel stands. Yeah. I I had heard I had heard very very early on like like early March that that Chuck was the guy they wanted that they were moving toward him that he was their quarterback and then from there you know I start you know I that's just kind of kind of what we do like I'm I'm reaching out to other teams finding out what do you think of him where's he going to go where's he going to go and like I think it was I think he was going I thought he was going to go to the end of the first round a lot of wacky stuff happened in the first round he ends up going 40 I think I think it's very very very likely he's gone within the next 10 picks somebody probably trades up to get him uh in that range. But look, I I might I might be wrong. I might I might not know, but you know, we were the guys that said Chuck and Hunter Deckers and um you know, fair enough. Have to look it up, check the tapes. But, uh we appreciate your time and your insight as always. Great stuff. You do look uh like there's almost like there's a weight lifted off your shoulders. A little bit of relief the way this is all played out. It's more It's more Yeah. Well, a I don't have this like thing swinging over my head that could drop any moment. Like, okay, I can like go to the grocery store and no one's going to be like, "Hey, Derek's Derek." And you got check out. Yeah. Look, I I've ran out. I've ran out. And if you're going to grocery shop, make sure you go to Rouses. Uh if you know, I've ran out on carts in stores though. like, you know, middle of the store, ice cream in it, whatever. Like, oh, got to go. Like, don't have time to check out. Got to go hit this walk out of movies, walk out of dinners. Yeah, man. Some something happens, you got to go. Like, it's the the surgery call. And like Yeah. I mean, it's just great not having that hanging over your head. A, and B, it's just not been a fun atmosphere at all. Like, it's just kind of been a it's been a it's been a rough, ugly atmosphere. When the fans are unhappy, that makes doing this a lot less fun. uh you know, you kind of want to talk about possibility and hope instead of despair and destruction and survival. Uh and this might end up being very very very horrible. It might end up being way worse. It might be extremely hopeless by Halloween, but for now there there's just hope and possibility. It's it's the unopen Christmas present. And uh you know, the the gift you got might suck, but like somebody might have actually paid attention and got you the right thing. And uh you know, until until that box is unwrapped, it's it's just excitement. So, I'm excited to see what it is.