Former New Orleans Saints quarterback Derek Carr is not completely closing the door on an NFL return, but he made clear it would take more than a routine quarterback opening to pull him out of retirement.
Speaking on “Good Morning Football,” Carr was asked whether fans could see him “in pads again.” His answer was notable both for what he left open and for what he did not suggest.
“You know, I’ll never say never,” Carr said. “It would take a special situation.”
Carr added that “multiple teams” reached out to him this offseason to gauge his interest, though he declined to identify them. He described them as “good solid football teams,” but said his standard at this point in his career is simple.
“I think I’m just at the point where I just want to win, man,” Carr said.
For Saints fans, that does not sound like the start of a reunion campaign. It sounds more like a veteran quarterback acknowledging that he could be available in an emergency for the right contender, while New Orleans continues moving forward without him.
Derek Carr Says Teams Reached Out After Saints Retirement
Carr retired in May 2025 after 11 NFL seasons, ending a two-year run with the Saints that never quite matched the expectations that came with his four-year, $150 million deal. The Saints announced at the time that Carr had experienced pain in his right shoulder while ramping up for the 2025 season, and medical scans showed a labral tear with “significant degenerative changes” to his rotator cuff.
That injury created a messy football situation for New Orleans. Carr’s retirement gave the Saints clarity before the 2025 season, but it also forced the franchise into an immediate quarterback reset under head coach Kellen Moore.
Carr’s latest comments are consistent with earlier reporting from NFL Network. In February, Ian Rapoport, Tom Pelissero and Mike Garafolo reported that teams had done due diligence on Carr during the season and into the playoffs as quarterback injuries mounted around the league. That report also noted that the Saints still held Carr’s rights, though his contract situation was not expected to be an unreasonable obstacle if he wanted to play elsewhere.
Carr did not sound like someone aggressively searching for a job. He said he is enjoying time with his wife and children and trying to improve at golf. He also said he stays in shape, joking that he has four sons who “can’t beat me up” when they are older.
“I’ll be in shape and ready,” Carr said, “but probably not.”
Why a Derek Carr-Saints Reunion Still Looks Unlikely
The Saints angle here is less about Carr returning to New Orleans and more about how far the franchise has moved since his exit.
New Orleans is now building around Tyler Shough. ESPN reported in January that the Saints were preparing to move ahead with Shough as their starting quarterback for 2026 after the 2025 second-round pick went 5-4 as a starter as a rookie. Shough completed 67.6% of his passes for 2,384 yards with 10 touchdowns and six interceptions, while also rushing for three scores.
That matters because Carr’s criteria — a “special team” that “maybe lost somebody or needed somebody” — does not describe the Saints’ current plan. New Orleans already made the hard pivot. The franchise absorbed the disruption of Carr’s retirement, gave Shough real playing time and entered the offseason with a clearer quarterback direction than it had when Carr’s shoulder injury first became public.
A Carr return would also create the exact kind of short-term ambiguity the Saints spent the past year trying to escape. Carr was productive enough to keep New Orleans competitive at times, but the pairing did not deliver a playoff breakthrough. He went 14-13 as the Saints’ starter and his retirement came as the team was already transitioning to Moore and a younger quarterback room.
Carr’s Comments Matter More for the NFL Than the Saints
Carr’s message should still interest Saints fans because he remains tied to one of the defining roster turns of the post-Drew Brees era. His departure changed the franchise’s timetable. It pushed New Orleans away from another veteran patch and toward a reset that now depends heavily on Shough’s development.
But Carr’s comeback path, if it ever opens, looks more likely to run through a contender with a sudden injury than through New Orleans. He said as much without naming teams.
“If I were to do it, it would have to be a special team,” Carr said. “Even then, it’s not guaranteed.”
That is the practical takeaway. Carr is not completely retired in the emotional sense. He is training, he is healthy enough to consider the question and teams have checked in. But he is also not presenting himself as a quarterback desperate to return to any depth chart.
For the Saints, that is probably fine. Their Carr chapter ended abruptly, but it also gave the franchise a cleaner runway to evaluate Shough. Carr’s latest comments may keep his name in the NFL quarterback conversation, but they do not change the direction in New Orleans.
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