What had been expected for months finally became official Tuesday: Derek Carr no longer is a member of the Raiders.
Las Vegas released Carr shortly before the deadline which would have guaranteed his $40.4 million salary for the 2023 season. Carr, the Raiders’ starting quarterback for the last nine campaigns, now is free to sign with any team in the league.
While announcing the news about Carr’s Las Vegas release, ESPN’s Adam Schefter identified two teams that are expected to show interest in the free-agent QB: the New Orleans Saints and the Carolina Panthers.
Both the Saints and the Panthers have struggled to stabilize their signal-caller situation after losing franchise legends. Five different quarterbacks started for Carolina and New Orleans following the departures of Cam Newton and Drew Brees, respectively.
The Saints already showed interest in Carr by bringing him in for a visit when the Raiders allowed the 31-year-old to seek out a trade. Carr ultimately refused to accept a trade out of Las Vegas, but who knows what kind of headway — if any — he made with New Orleans while he was in town.
The Panthers and Saints probably won’t be the only teams to make a run at Carr, though. Don’t count out the New York Jets, whose new passing game coordinator previously was Carr’s quarterbacks coach for two seasons in Las Vegas.
