Saints' Derek Carr to Start vs. Baker Mayfield, Bucs Despite Shoulder Injury

The New Orleans Saints announced that quarterback Derek Carr will play against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Sunday's Week 4 matchup despite nursing an AC sprain in his right shoulder.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport previously reported Sunday morning that Carr would play. Rapoport first reported Saturday night that the Saints were 'optimistic' that Carr would play.

Carr sprained the AC joint in his throwing shoulder during an 18-17 loss to the Green Bay Packers last weekend.

The 32-year-old completed 13 of 18 passes for 103 yards and one touchdown before exiting the Week 3 matchup against Green Bay with a little more than 10 minutes remaining in the third quarter after being sacked and landing on his shoulder.

The Saints listed Carr as questionable for Sunday's matchup after he did not practice on Wednesday or Thursday. The veteran was a limited participant in Friday's practice, and head coach Dennis Allen told reporters at the time that the team would "see where he's at" on Saturday "and go from there."

"It's can he go out and execute his job," Allen said. "That's really all this is. So, we'll see where he's at and we'll make an evaluation and go from there.

"We had a long conversation with the doctors and what the risk factors are. Any time you have this injury, there's obviously more risk than if this had never happened. The risk gets less and less each week you get (farther from having sustained the injury)."

Carr has been sacked 11 times this season, which is tied for the fifth-most in the NFL. The team's offensive line needs to do a much better job of protecting him moving forward if he hopes to remain healthy.

The Saints signed Carr to a four-year deal this summer after he was released by the Las Vegas Raiders. Despite throwing two interceptions, he has been solid through three starts, completing 65.5 percent of his passes for 636 yards and two touchdowns.

New Orleans is 2-1 with Carr under center and is in a tight battle for first in the NFC South with the Buccaneers (2-1) and Atlanta Falcons (2-1). If the Saints hope to win the division, they'll need a big win over the Bucs on Sunday.

If Carr is unable to suit up, Jameis Winston would be in line to start. He completed 10 of 16 passes for 101 yards while filling in for Carr last weekend.