New Orleans Saints quarterback Derek Carr is expected to miss multiple weeks with two injuries sustained Sunday.
In the fourth quarter against the New York Giants, Carr scrambled out of a sack, leaped over a pair of Giants defenders and a teammate, then jarred his left hand and slammed his head as he fell to the turf at MetLife Stadium. New Orleans interim head coach Darren Rizzi said Carr would be “week to week,” but with just four weeks left, the injuries are likely to end his season.
“As it stands at this moment, I don’t believe it’s going to be an [injured reserve] situation, I think it’s going to be a week-to-week situation,” Rizzi said at a press conference Monday.
Rizzi said Carr is in the concussion protocol, and “he’s got to complete the first step of that tomorrow [Tuesday].”With 4:06 left in the game, Carr scrambled out of a sack from Giants linebacker Brian Burns. He rolled to his right and ran for the first down marker, being chased by safety Dane Belton. He then leaped over wide receiver Kevin Austin Jr., who was blocking Giants cornerback Adoree’ Jackson. Carr slammed into Austin, while being hit by Belton from behind, and fell to the turf. His wrist hit first, before he landed directly on his facemask. He was on the turf for several minutes, apparently unconscious, before being led back to the locker room with his hand immobile.
Rizzi called the hand injury a “good news-bad news situation” as it was to his nonthrowing hand, and said it is possible Carr could play through it, though he also needs to clear concussion protocol before those decisions are made.
“I'll say this: it’s been done before. ... It appears at the moment that it’s nonsurgical, which is a big aspect of it.”
Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen suffered a similar injury to his nonthrowing hand in Week 1 against the Arizona Cardinals. While leaping for a touchdown in the fourth quarter, Allen sustained an injury to his left wrist. He played the rest of the game with his left arm heavily taped. He then played through the injury again in a Thursday Night Football game against the Miami Dolphins in Week 2.
This will be the second time this season that Carr has missed multiple weeks with an injury. He suffered an oblique injury in Week 5 against the Kansas City Chiefs and missed three games.
Rizzi said the team would decide Monday on whether to start Spencer Rattler or Jake Haener in place of Carr. Rattler, the Saints’ fifth-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, started the three games when Carr was injured; he threw for 571 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. Haener, a 2023 fourth-round pick, filled in for Carr against New York on Sunday and has played limited snaps in seven games for New Orleans.
Utility player Taysom Hill, who was listed as a quarterback for most of his career but is currently listed as a tight end, is out for the season due to an ACL tear he suffered against the Los Angeles Rams last week.
