Derek Carr‘s free agency is going to be a “long process,” according to the veteran quarterback’s brother, who says the four-time Pro Bowler will “do his due diligence” in choosing a new team.
Carr visited with the Jets last weekend and spent multiple days with the Saints earlier this month but still is a free agent as of Tuesday, one week after being released by the Raiders. His older brother David Carr, a former NFL quarterback, discussed Derek’s recent visit with the Jets during an interview Monday night.
“He had a great trip, but it’s honestly going to be a long process, though,” David Carr said in an interview with NFL Network. “He really only has the Saints, the Raiders and the Jets to kind of compare those three places. So he wants to do his due diligence and see as many places as he can to get a feel for what the best place for him will be.”
The Panthers also have been linked to Carr, but a league source told ESPN’s David Newton that Carolina does not plan to heavily pursue the veteran quarterback immediately.
The Panthers could potentially show interest in Carr, the source told Newton, if he doesn’t sign quickly with one of his primary suitors and he lowers his asking price for a new contract.
David said Derek “hit it off” with Jets head coach Robert Saleh and noted that his younger brother has a relationship with newly hired Jets quarterbacks coach Todd Downing, who was a Raiders assistant coach during Carr’s first three Pro Bowl seasons in 2015, 2016 and 2017.
“He went there to get a feel for how they work, from the top down,” David said. “Everyone he met — and we knew he would love Robert Saleh; I’ve known Robert for a while … he’s fantastic — they hit it off, and they would love to work together.
“But there’s a lot of questions to be asked. He has to find out the inner workings — obviously how the front office works, but then also I think the most important thing for him as a veteran quarterback: What is it going to be like as an offensive playcaller and a quarterback and that relationship. Todd Downing is there — he has a relationship with Todd. Nathaniel Hackett is also there. So how does all that work? They had a good chat; they talked about a lot of different things.”
Jets owner Woody Johnson said recently that quarterback was the “missing piece” and that he would “absolutely” pay big bucks to acquire a veteran. The Jets started three quarterbacks last season, contributing to acute struggles on offense and a six-game losing streak to end the season. They changed offensive coordinators, replacing Mike LaFleur with Hackett.
“Obviously the team is just in need of a quarterback and some stability there,” David Carr said. “They have a lot of good components. There’s a lot of things that are very positive about the Jets.”
Signing Carr would be a departure from their recent history for the Jets, who have used first-round draft picks on Mark Sanchez (2009), Sam Darnold (2018) and Zach Wilson (2021) but never achieved stability at quarterback. Since their last playoff season in 2010, the Jets have the fewest touchdown passes (225) and are tied with the Buccaneers for the most interceptions (210).
Carr, who turns 32 next month, was released by the Raiders on Feb. 14 after declining to waive his no-trade clause and just before more than $40 million of his contract would have become guaranteed. He holds virtually every Raiders passing record and has thrown for more than 4,000 yards in four of the past five seasons.
Information from ESPN’s Rich Cimini and Paul Gutierrez was used in this report.
