Canal Street Chronicles
Some good, some bad.
Every offseason, each NFL team faces player departures that will change the outlook for the next season and beyond. The New Orleans Saints have been victims of this throughout history, but this offseason was interesting. The Saints had an underwhelming season in 2024, so the losses may not be as impactful as in other years. Still, for production, position value, or other reasons, three players stood out as very impactful departures from the Saints in 2025.
This is the obvious choice, but it needs to be talked about how impactful Derek Carr’s departure from the team is. Looking at this in a positive light, the Saints got massive cap relief after Carr’s retirement became official. Also, because the retirement was after June 1st, New Orleans was able to split the dead cap hit of Carr’s contract over two years. Financially, Carr’s departure has given the team a much better outlook for next season, and if little to no other moves are made, the Saints will be nearly in the positive to start next offseason.
Another more positive aspect of this departure is the culture. The tension of the Carr era was felt from near the beginning, with it reaching its height early in the offseason. There was a feeling that Carr wanted out, but the Saints knew how horrible a financial move that would have been. This was the main reason why New Orleans decided to restructure Carr’s contract, even if he did not want that to happen. A situation like this is never what a team wants to deal with, but it can be even worse with a whole new coaching staff entering their first year. Now, with Carr no longer on the team, the Saints can leave that era behind and start a fresh one in 2025.
Although there were clear positives with this departure, this is also a massive loss for the Saints. Yes, I know play on the field was bad at times, and the rising tensions needed to be dealt with, but Carr was still a decent QB to have as a starter. The Saints' roster, coaching staff, and injury history throughout the Carr era were not good, and it always felt like luck was never on the team’s side. Ultimately, these factors could have been self-inflicted, but it also never felt like this team showed their full potential. The Saints are still losing a massive amount of quarterback production from Carr’s departure. This could reflect in the short-term success of the team, but in the end, this departure was best for the Saints’ long-term future.
The next impactful departure that needs to be discussed is cornerback Paulson Adebo. When Adebo went down with a season-ending injury against the Denver Broncos, the quality of play at cornerback took a massive hit. Even with some horrible penalties throughout the season, Adebo was needed on this defense, and at only 25 years...
