After Derek Carr's retirement, where do Saints go from here at quarterback?

The Derek Carr era in New Orleans has ended. The 34-year-old quarterback is retiring, citing a shoulder injury that will require surgery and would have forced him to miss the 2025 season. 

He went 14-13 in his two-year run with the Saints, limited by injuries and playing through others, ultimately unable to be the quarterback to get New Orleans back to the playoffs for the first time since Drew Brees' retirement after the 2020 season.

Carr's retirement ends an awkward period of uncertainty, with news of the shoulder injury coming out just before the draft. The Saints' difficult salary cap situation had forced them to rework his contract to create immediate cap space and, as a result, his contract will count $50 million in "dead money," or cap space devoted to a completed contract, over 2025 and 2026.

The Saints had anticipated Carr's absence by using their second-round pick in the draft on Louisville quarterback Tyler Shough, and the 25-year-old is now the favorite to step in to Carr's role at quarterback under first-year head coach Kellen Moore. New Orleans has drafted quarterbacks three years in a row, but Shough should be able to beat out second-year pro Spencer Rattler, who went 0-6 last season filling in for Carr, and third-year pro Jake Haener, 0-1 in his only career start.

If the Saints want to sign a veteran QB, the best free agents still available include Aaron Rodgers, who appears headed for the Steelers, Carson Wentz and Desmond Ridder.

New Orleans is coming off a 5-12 season that was the franchise's worst record since 2005, before Brees joined the team. The Saints' salary-cap inflexibility limited their offseason additions, so the challenge will be keeping up with the Panthers and Falcons, also with young