The Saints Now Lead An Important NFC South Measure

The New Orleans Saints had some struggles entering the post-Drew Brees era.

It’s normal for there to be some growing pains in the transition from a first-ballot Hall of Famer at QB to anybody else.

And needless to say, neither Jameis Winston nor Andy Dalton were the right guys to lead the franchise going forward.

Moreover, signing Derek Carr now puts the Saints over the edge in the NFC South, giving them a major advantage in the QB department over their divisional rivals.

As ESPN insider Adam Schefter pointed out, the Saints now have Derek Carr, Jake Luton, and Jameis Winston under contract, although the latter is expected to be a salary-cap casualty.

On the flip side, the Atlanta Falcons have Desmond Ridder and Logan Woodside, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have Kyle Trask, and the Carolina Panthers have Matt Corral and Jacob Eason, with Sam Darnold reportedly looking to sign a new contract.

NFC South QBs under contract for next season as of today:

Saints:
🏈 Derek Carr
🏈Jameis Winston*
🏈 Jake Luton

Falcons:
🏈 Desmond Ridder
🏈 Logan Woodside

Buccaneers
🏈 Kyle Trask

Panthers:
🏈 Matt Corral
🏈 Jacob Eason

*likely cap casualty

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 6, 2023

Of course, this puts the Saints in a privileged position in the NFC South, as they’ll have virtually no competition for the divisional pennant, at least next season.

Carr might not be the best quarterback in the league, but he’s much better than some of his critics claim.

He was never put in a position to succeed and spent his entire career with one of the worst-managed organizations in all of football.

There are plenty of reasons to be looking forward to next season if you’re a Saints fan.