It has been a difficult start to the season for a number of quarterbacks. At least four starting quarterbacks have already gone down with injuries.
The worst so far was the injury to New York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart. He will be out for the rest of the season as he undergoes knee surgery. This is a devastating blow for the Giants.
They have looked solid in the first two games of the season and were hoping to be a sleeper team. Without a good starting quarterback, they could be in serious trouble. Backup Jameis Winston played very poorly in relief of the injured Dart in Week 2.
The Giants would be wise to explore their quarterback options. While they could take a flyer on somebody like Aidan O’Connell or Mac Jones, they could also try to convince a more proven quarterback to come out of retirement.
There has been speculation that the Giants could reach out to former Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Derek Carr, who retired prior to last season. However, he has flirted with the idea of coming back for the right situation and is still only 35 years old. Being able to play for John Harbaugh could be an appealing situation for Carr, but it sounds like he may be happy in retirement.
Carr Responds to Giants Rumors
Carr has had ample time for his shoulder to recover and appears to be staying in football shape. It’s hard to imagine he’d be able to play immediately, but it also likely wouldn’t take him too long to get back up to speed.
Unfortunately for Giants fans, Carr took a coaching job with UCLA this offseason, and while he could easily leave that, he could be enjoying his free time a little too much.
“Beautiful picture but I’m too busy trying to find a level 40 crew to join,” Carr wrote on X in response to a picture of him in a Giants uniform.
Notably, Carr’s brother David Carr spent four years with the Giants, so the family is very familiar with the organization. Perhaps that could convince Derek Carr to change his mind. Though it sounds like Carr would rather stay retired, there’s still plenty of time to convince him to play.
Does Carr Have Anything Left in the Tank?
Carr didn’t play last season and was banged up when he last played two years ago. It’s difficult to know what a team would be getting in him.
He’s proven that he’s at least an above-average starting quarterback, but he’s also getting older. The Giants are an improving team, but there are some red flags for Carr to worry about.
New York won four games last season and has been a disaster for several years. Sure, they have Harbaugh, but he hasn’t even been around a full year yet. Carr may be more inclined to wait until a team that has proven it can contend needs a quarterback. Carr could also truly be done playing football. He’s already made plenty of money, so he’d only be going back to scratch a competitive itch.
Ex-Raiders QB Derek Carr Responds to Giants Rumors