Derek Carr

Releasing Derek Carr before the start of the new league year would create a $50.1 million dead money cap hit.

This, for a team that already has a $31.7 million dead money Marshon Lattimore cap hit. Designating Carr a post-June 1 release would be far more palatable, but his entire $51.5 million cap hit would then remain on the books until June, leaving a team currently projected to be $60 million over the 2025 cap with essentially zero flexibility. A standard restructure would free up plenty of space, but then leave Carr with an otherworldly (for him) $69.2 million 2026 cap number. Long story short, the Saints face nothing but hard choices with their failed franchise player. It’s going to be a bumpy offseason in NOLA.