Raiders: Why Derek Carr to the Saints makes sense
Raiders: Why Derek Carr to the Saints makes sense
Talented weapons like Alvin Kamara and Chris Olave
Another reason why Derek Carr likely chose the New Orleans Saints is because of the litany of weapons he will have available to him in that offense. He wasn’t lacking for weapons in Las Vegas but the Saints have a solid group of stars and potential stars at most of the skill positions.
The headliner of the group is running back Alvin Kamara who despite having what some would call a down year for his standards, still put up 1400 yards from scrimmage and four touchdowns. We can say that Josh Jacobs is a more capable pure rusher but the versatility Kamara brings to the game is what makes him special.
His ability to turn checkdowns into home runs should fit perfectly with Derek cars ability to work the pocket and find his open receivers underneath.
At receiver, the Saints have a future superstar in Chris Olave who had a 1,000 yard season in 2023 despite some turnover and chaos at the quarterback position. Olave has the potential to be a dominant player at his position and he will be even better in 2023 if fellow star receiver Michael Thomas is back in the fold.
Thomas played just three games last year before being essentially shut down for the season with injury but if he is fully recovered then he can combine with Olave to make a dangerous duo. Davante Adams is still the best receiver that Derek Carr has ever played with but this combination of Olave and Thomas would be reminiscent of the Amari Cooper and Michael Crabtree combo that Carr had early in his career.
At tight end, starter Juwan Johnson had a great year but is currently a restricted free agent and of course that would allow the Saints to potentially bring him back on the cheap. After a 500 yard and seven touchdown season they would be smart to do so. Taysom Hill is also technically listed as a tight end and he gives Derek Carr another interesting weapon to work with, especially in the red zone.
The Saints will need to address the backup running back position but they have a number of other auxiliary weapons that Carr can work with. He has a true deep threat in Rashid Shaheed who averaged more than 17 yards per reception and Tre’Quan Smith is a solid option in the slot. There were some lean years for Carr when it came to his skill position guys but that should be of little concern in New Orleans.