Derek Carr retirement: Saints coach Kellen Moore says all three remaining QBs will compete for starting job

After Derek Carr’s sudden retirement, the New Orleans Saints are left with three quarterbacks on their active roster. And according to new head coach Kellen Moore, they will each get a chance to compete for the starting role in Carr’s absence. 

“We’re gonna let all three of these guys roll,” Moore said of second-round pick Tyler Shough and incumbent veterans Spencer Rattler and Jake Haener, via the New Orleans Times-Picayune. “They’ve all earned these opportunities.”

As the No. 40 overall pick in the most recent NFL Draft (and the second pick of the recently kicked-off Moore era), Shough figures to have the inside track among the trio. Shough, who turns 26 in September, played for seven seasons at Oregon, Texas Tech and Louisville, making 32 starts along the way. He most recently completed 244 of 389 passes for 3,195 yards, 23 touchdowns and six interceptions in his lone season at Louisville, becoming the third quarterback off the board following No. 1 overall pick Cam Ward and No. 25 pick Jaxson Dart.

Derek Carr retires: Options at quarterback for Saints, including rookie Tyler Shough, pursuing Aaron Rodgers

Jared Dubin

“For these QBs, a lot of times what you care about is how they command the huddle, how they command the operation,” Moore said of Shough, again via the Times-Picayune. “He hopped in here and did an excellent job taking control of it.”

Rattler and Haener have each been given chances to start already in New Orleans. They combined to go 0-7 last season in the games Carr missed due to various injuries. 

In seven appearances (six starts), Rattler — a fifth-round pick in 2024 — completed 57% of his passes at an average of only 5.8 yards per attempt, with four touchdown passes against five interceptions. Haener, a fourth-round pick in 2023, made one start last season and appeared in seven other games, going just 18 of 39 for 226 yards, one touchdown, and one interception along the way. Each was drafted under the previous head-coaching regime, and therefore seems less likely than Shough to ultimately earn the starting role.