On the surface, the shoulder injury to New Orleans Saints quarterback Derek Carr doesn’t have much impact on the Atlanta Falcons. Of course it makes a bad Saints team worse as the injury could cost him the entire 2025 season.
In short, the Saints are in the market for a quarterback one way or another. On the other hand, the Falcons have one in Kirk Cousins that is available for the right price (and if-when Cousins waives his no-trade clause). While it never seems popular to make major trades within a division, this could be mutually beneficial.
The Saints Draft Weekend Situation
The Saints have nine picks in the upcoming 2025 NFL Draft. The Falcons only have five, and two of those are seventh rounders. That’s not great for a team that has multiple needs to fill. The Saints have picks; the Falcons don’t. This could make a lot of sense. Cousins reportedly wants to wait until after the draft to waive his no-trade, but it’s not difficult to see this coming to head on the weekend of April 24th.
Terrin Waack of AtlantaFalcons.com takes a look at the Saints situation:
“First, the Saints began their voluntary offseason workout program Monday,” Waack writes. “Spencer Rattler already posted from the training facility over the weekend, making it pretty safe to assume he’ll be in attendance. The Saints drafted Rattler in the fifth round last year, and he played in seven games as a rookie, even starting six, when Carr was injured.
“Secondly, the 2025 NFL Draft begins next Thursday. The Saints have the No. 9 overall pick and have been gathering intel on this year’s quarterback class. Head coach Kellen Moore visited Cam Ward’s pro day at Miami, Will Howard’s at Ohio State and Jaxson Dart’s at Ole Miss.”
At No. 9, it’s safe to say that Miami quarterback Cam Ward won’t be there. Virtually every draftnik has Ward going No. 1 overall to the Tennessee Titans. Here’s just one of the many. The next school of thinking is that the Saints would look to pounce on Colorado QB Shedeur Sanders if he falls to No. 9. It is absolutely anyone’s guess where Sanders goes. Some pundits have him going as high as No. 2 to the Cleveland Browns, some have him falling out of the first round altogether, and everywhere in between. If the Saints don’t land Sanders, it will be decision-making time.
When is it time to call Atlanta?
It’s time to call the Atlanta Falcons when you don’t find a quarterback at No. 9 (unless they slide down and look at Dart or maybe Alabama’s Jalen Milroe). Even if the Saints do draft a quarterback, they might want a veteran seat warmer while the rookie gets his feet under him. While the recent trend in the NFL has been to throw rookies right into the fire, that doesn’t always mean it’s the best idea.
In terms of the Falcons asking price on Cousins, there isn’t much out there at the moment. Surely, his market will change as teams like the Saints see their season come more into focus during and after the draft.
Again, this is mutually beneficial. The Saints are going to need to get a quarterback than can win some games. The Falcons have an expensive veteran with a history of success that isn’t going to play for them because they have Michael Penix. And, starting quarterback positions have filled up around the league, so there aren’t a lot of potential landing spots for Cousins. It wouldn’t be surprising to see a move made on the first or second day of the draft.
What Carr Injury Means for Falcons and Cousins