The New Orleans Saints and their fanbase were gifted tough news earlier this offseason when it was announced that starting quarterback Derek Carr was dealing with a serious injury to his throwing shoulder. It was clear his 2025 NFL season was up in the air, but most probably weren’t expecting for this to completely derail the rest of his career. It has proven to do just that with Carr announcing his retirement on Saturday. 

Four-time Pro Bowl QB Derek Carr is retiring, sources tell The Insiders.

Dealing with a shoulder injury that threatened his season with the #Saints, Carr walks away at age 34. pic.twitter.com/9Gef6y75pd

— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) May 10, 2025

The Saints were clearly preparing for this scenario behind the scenes, drafting former Louisville signal caller Tyler Shough with the No. 40 overall selection in the 2025 NFL Draft. It appears the plan is, at least for the short term, to let Shough battle it out with second-year pro Spencer Rattler for that starting quarterback job. Jake Haener is also on the roster as some insurance, but it’s possible that New Orleans brings in some veteran competition as well over the next few months to continue getting options in the room. 

If Shough shows himself to be a viable option for the future, that’s great. As a second round selection, however, he doesn’t need to be necessarily. If the Saints have the type of season that some expect, you should fully expect them to be in on the quarterback market next offseason. The 2026 NFL Draft is going to be what everyone is talking about in the wonderful state of Louisiana. 

Most of the early talk will center around Texas quarterback Arch Manning for the obvious reasons. Not only is he a Louisiana native himself, but his grandfather Archie was a former quarterback for the Saints. He was drafted into a time where it was almost impossible to be a successful quarterback for the expansion franchise, but this could be the ultimate storyline of redemption and a Manning returning home to rescue the New Orleans organization from tough times.

Manning enters this fall with a ton of expectations during his first season as the starter for the Longhorns. The redshirt sophomore is extremely talented, which is a big reason he was once viewed to be a five-star player in the 2023 recruiting class aside from his last name. At 6-4 and 220 pounds, he is an outstanding blend of size, athleticism, and arm talent. 

While he is expected to have a huge season this fall, and the tools are tremendous, Manning and his family have been very vocal about their wants for him to graduate and not chase the NFL dream after only one season of starting. As it’s stands today, it is very, very unlikely that he enters the 2026 class. It’ll be interesting to see if the state of the Saints would cause Manning to reconsider his position, but for now, that’s the stance out there for the rest of his career in Austin. 

There are going to be some intriguing options in the 2026 quarterback crop outside of the Manning hail mary, including South Carolina dual threat LaNorris Sellers and Clemson star Cade Klubnik. The player that most Saints fans will gravitate to, however, is a local kid that the NFL does have some high praise for. That’s LSU signal caller Garrett Nussmeier, who gave thought to entering the 2025 class before returning for one final season in Baton Rouge. 

On top of Nussmeier being a local product, his last name will also be quite familiar to New Orleans fans with his father Doug serving as offensive coordinator for the team. Whether a father would want to coach his son in that type of pressure situation would be a major question, but there could be a lot of outside pressure for it to happen depending how Nussmeier performs in 2025 for the Tigers. 

Here’s the main issue, Nussmeier is exactly the type of quarterback that gets a team into purgatory, or in this case, keeps them there. Carr was the definition of purgatory, a good quarterback that wasn’t good enough to take a team on a deep playoff run, but also wasn’t bad enough to completely bottom out. You just always stick in the middle ground with that type of quarterback, and in a murky spot to how to move forward. 

That’s exactly the type of quarterback you’re getting with Nussmeier, especially if you are drafting him near the top of the draft next April to be an elevator. For every impressive throw Nussmeier makes on film, he has a couple plays of an ill advised spin out against non pressure, or a cringeworthy turnover. We are dealing with a quarterback who has already been overhyped a ton, and doesn’t bring a ton of natural gifts to the table. 

Try telling that to Saints fans won’t be very easy. If Nussmeier did come in and was the savior of the Saints organization, it would be a great story and one that folks would rally around. With the roster where it is, and the cap situation in even worse shape, that is just not a realistic outlook for the program’s future. 

At the end of the day, the Saints need an elevator, a quarterback that can make the most out of the least at times. Nussmeier isn’t that player, and if you try to make him that, you could also cost yourself the chance to get the real hometown hero in the 2027 NFL Draft. That’s the very definition of purgatory, and Saints fans should be just about ready for the end of it. 

Georgia Bulldogs breakout is a 2026 NFL Draft prospect who is expected to make a massive rise during the 2025 college football season

A Georgia Bulldog breakout is coming.