The Saints and Derek Carr made a “trade” before he retired.
The injured Carr retired Saturday after agreeing to forfeit his $30 million fully guaranteed salary in 2025 in exchange for keeping the $10 million roster bonus he was paid in March, according to NFL Network and Pro Football Talk.
The Saints also will not try to recoup any pro-rated amount of the $28.5 million signing bonus that Carr received when he inked a four-year, $150 million free-agent contract in 2023.
Carr could have pocketed the $30 million if he had undergone shoulder surgery to repair a labral tear and damage to his rotator cuff.
Then, he likely would have sat out the full season while recovering on injured reserve and could have decided on his future next offseason.
But both sides gave a little to meet in the middle on how to end a two-year union and allow the four-time Pro Bowler to retire on his terms without further hurting the Saints, who constantly live in salary-cap hell.
The salary-cap relief could be used to improve the roster or at least pursue a veteran backup quarterback to add to a room that is suddenly lacking experience without Carr.
The Saints are still left with dead salary-cap charges of $13.2 million in 2025 and $35.6 million in 2026, per Spotrac.
Jake Haener, Spencer Rattler and rookie Tyler Shough combine for seven NFL starts (0-7).
The two sides restructured Carr’s contract in March to allow for a scenario where he would keep $10 million and give back $30 million.
Originally injured on Dec. 8 against the Giants, Carr didn’t realize the extent of his injury until March, when he contacted the Saints medical staff and further testing was performed.
Carr was the No. 16 highest-paid player in NFL history at the end of the 2024 season and his new roster bonus will push him above $200 million in earnings over an 11-year career (nine with the Raiders).
