Saints' Derek Carr Retires from NFL at Age 34 amid Injury After Discussing with Wife

One month after a reported shoulder injury left his status for the 2025 season up in the air, Derek Carr is retiring from the NFL at the age of 34.

Carr said in a statement announcing his retirement that he made the decision "upon reflection of prayer" and after discussing the situation with his wife, Heather.

“Upon reflection of prayer, and in discussion with Heather, I’ve decided to retire from the National Football League,” said Carr. “For more than 11 years, we have been incredibly blessed, and we are forever grateful and humbled by this experience. It’s difficult to find the right words to express our thanks to all the teammates, coaches, management, ownership, team officials and especially the fans who made this journey so special. Your unwavering support has meant the world to us.”

A statement from the New Orleans Saints issued in conjunction with Carr's announcement noted he began experiencing pain in his right shoulder while ramping up his preparation for the 2025 season.

Subsequent medical scans revealed Carr "sustained a labral tear and also had significant degenerative changes to his rotator cuff."

The Saints noted their medical staff, along with Carr's representatives and independent medical experts, worked to determine his best path forward and that surgery was an option, but there was "no guarantee Derek would return to the level of strength, function and performance of play to which he was accustomed."

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport originally reported on April 11 that Carr was dealing with a shoulder injury that left him uncertain to play next season.

Per ESPN's Katherine Terrell, Carr confirmed the injury during a guest sermon at Church LV in Las Vegas on April 27 and criticized fan and media speculation about his availability.

"I have an MRI report to prove it. The team knows about it, we've been in constant communication," Carr said. "There's nothing wrong, we're figuring it out and we're gonna go forward with that."

Despite using a second-round pick on Tyler Shough, Saints general manager Mickey Loomis told reporters after the final day of the draft that Carr would be the starter if he was healthy.

Instead, the Saints will go into their offseason program with Shough, Spencer Rattler and Jake Haener as their top three quarterbacks unless they try to bring in someone else as a free agent.

Meanwhile, Carr will end his career sooner than anyone was anticipating. He had been among the most durable quarterbacks in the NFL prior to last season when hand and oblique injuries limited him to 10 games.

Carr started at least 15 games in each of his first 10 seasons. He did suffer a fractured fibula in Week 16 of the 2016 campaign for the Oakland Raiders that kept him out for the final game of the regular season and their playoff loss to the Houston Texans.

The Raiders originally selected Carr in the second round of the 2014 draft. He spent nine seasons with the franchise, becoming their all-time leader in passing yards (35,222), passing touchdowns (217) and quarterback rating (91.8).

After the Raiders released Carr in February 2023, he signed with the Saints as a free agent the following month. The Fresno State alum threw for 6,023 yards, 40 touchdowns and 13 interceptions in 27 starts over the past two seasons.

Carr will finish his career ranked 22nd in both passing yards (41,245) and passing touchdowns (257, tied with Joe Flacco).