Even though he is no longer a member of the New Orleans Saints organization, Drew Brees is still doing what he can to help out his former team.
The Saints formally introduced Derek Carr as their new starting quarterback on Saturday. The Saints and Carr came to terms on a reported four-year, $150 million contract deal on Monday. Carr’s new multiyear deal includes $100 million in total guarantees, and the veteran quarterback will receive $60 million in the first two years of his contract.
Multiple teams showed an interest in signing Carr after the Las Vegas Raiders released him last month. Among them, Carr touched base with Saints team officials after the Raiders granted him permission to meet with them. The four-time Pro Bowler was ultimately persuaded to take his talents to New Orleans following a conversation that he had with Brees.
“I sent Drew a text, it was early in the process,” Carr said. “He called me and I just asked questions. I asked questions about the organization, I asked questions about Mickey (Loomis), Pete (Carmichael), the city, everything. He answered a lot of questions for me.
“A lot of what he said is probably why I'm sitting here today. … I have so much respect for him as a player, I have so much respect for him more as a person and a Dad. I watched him at the Pro Bowl, sitting there with his kids, and the way that his kids admire him and talk about him. You can tell he's a genuine person, so a lot of what he had to say was going to carry weight with me. … A lot of what he said is probably why I'm sitting here today.”
The Saints have been on the lookout for an answer at the quarterback position since Brees’ retirement in 2021, and they will now hand the keys to the offense over to Carr.
The ninth-year passer is coming off of a roller-coaster 2022 campaign with the Raiders. He started in every game until he was benched following Las Vegas’ Week 16 road defeat to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Overall, he tallied 217 touchdown passes over his nine-year run with the AFC West side.