The Saints won on Sunday, but quarterback Derek Carr paid a heavy price. Carr exited the Saints’ 14-11 victory early with a left hand injury. Further tests revealed that the veteran suffered a significant fracture in that non-throwing hand and is expected to miss several weeks, according to NFL Media. Interim head coach Darren Rizzi also told reporters on Monday that Carr is in concussion protocol.
Given there are just four weeks left in the regular season, there is a good chance Carr’s season is done. That said, this report does note that the Saints may not place Carr on injured reserve to keep the window of a return open. If they were to place him on IR, he would be required to miss four weeks, which would be the rest of the year.
Carr sustained both injuries on a nine-yard run with just about nine minutes left in the game. Despite his absence, the Saints held on for a three-point win after the Giants missed a field goal with 11 seconds left.
“The thing is, before the series even started, he was just talking about how he was going to lay it on the line,” Saints tight end Juwan Johnson said of Carr. “And that’s the true example of laying it out on the line. … He cares about his team a lot and I’ll always go to war with somebody like that. It sucks that he got hurt from it, but I respect the decision for what he did. He’s just trying to win.”
Carr missed three games earlier this year due to injury. He was replaced in those games by rookie Spencer Rattler, who struggled as New Orleans failed to win a single game over that span. Jake Haener, a 2023 fourth-round pick, replaced Carr during the end of Sunday’s game.
Injuries have been an ongoing issue this season for the Saints, who are now 5-8 following a 2-0 start. New Orleans has somewhat salvaged this season, though, as it has won three of its past four games under interim head coach Darren Rizzi. Despite being under .500, they are technically still in the NFC South race, trailing the first-place Buccaneers by just two games in the loss column. Next week, the Saints will host the Washington Commanders before visiting the Green Bay Packers in Week 16, hosting the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 17, and then rounding out the year on the road against Tampa Bay.
