Tag: Update

Saints sign veteran quarterback after Derek Carr injury

The New Orleans Saints signed veteran quarterback Ben DiNucci after Derek Carr’s injury, rounding out the depth chart for practice this week:

The New Orleans Saints have signed veteran quarterback Ben DiNucci after an injury to Derek Carr, DiNucci announced on social media. A seventh-round pick by the Dallas Cowboys back in 2020, he started one game in his rookie year and has since spent time with the Denver Broncos and Buffalo Bills, as well as the XFL’s Seattle Sea Dragons.

Saints interim head coach Darren Rizzi characterized Carr’s injury as a “week to week” concern, but this development would suggest he’s unlikely to practice this week. Adding DiNucci to the rotation should keep drills moving on schedule with three able-bodied quarterbacks.

Still, we should expect either Spencer Rattler or Jake Haener to get the starting nod for Sunday’s game with the Washington Commanders.

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Darren Rizzi shares update on Derek Carr’s injury

Darren Rizzi gave an update on the injury status of Saints starting quarterback Derek Carr after their win over the New York Giants:

Darren Rizzi gave an update one the status of New Orleans Saints starting quarterback Derek Carr following the injury he suffered in the 14-11 road victory over the New York Giants.

Rizzi said in the postgame press conference that Carr had suffered a left hand injury late in the fourth quarter when he tried to diving for a first down. He also mentioned something even more concerning that some thought could be the case — Carr may be in concussion protocol.

This marks the second time this season New Orleans has lost its starting quarterback, and the last time that happened, it ended with a three-game losing streak before he was able to make his return.

It will be interesting to see what Carr’s status is as the Saints continue the season with a noon CT matchup against the visiting Washington Commanders on Sunday, Dec. 15 at the Caesars Superdome.

For now, the team will have to weigh the options of turning once more to an inexperienced Jake Haener or rookie quarterback Spencer Rattler, both of whom have had a tough go at it more times than not when asked to step up in Carr’s place.

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Derek Carr injured vs. Giants, replaced by Jake Haener

Derek Carr injured himself diving for a first down against the Giants. He was replaced by Jake Haener late in the fourth quarter:

This isn’t good. New Orleans Saints quarterback Derek Carr injured himself diving for a first down against the New York Giants. He was replaced by Jake Haener late in the fourth quarter.

Carr tried to jump over a couple of defenders after taking the ball himself on a zone read and cutting to the outside, but he fell awkwardly and landed with his weigh on his left, non-throwing arm. Depending on how the limb folded under him it could be a wrist or forearm issue, but we won’t speculate further.

We can’t rule out a concussion, either. The NFL’s independent neurological consultant met with Carr inside the sideline’s blue medical tent and escorted him to the locker room for further evaluation. Carr’s head struck the turf during his fall, too. This could be a complicated injury for him to deal with.

Stay tuned for more information as it becomes available.

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Giants star wide receiver status in question vs. Saints due to injury

Malik Nabers suffered an injury during practice this week that leaves his availability against the Saints up in the air:

Malik Nabers suffered a hip flexor injury in practice on Thursday that puts his ability to play against the New Orleans Saints in question, per Jordan Schultz. At the end of Friday’s injury report, teams are required to give players injury designation. This will reveal more information to form expectations.

Injuries in the middle of the week can be difficult to project, because players don’t have the full week to recuperate. Nabers could end up being a game-time decision.

Nabers has transformed into the New York Giants’ go-to receiver as a rookie. Quarterbacks Drew Lock, Tommy Devito, and Daniel Jones have all looked for Nabers at the end of games. That’s a trait of your top receiver. Despite missing a pair of games, he is still the Giants leading receiver in yards, targets, and catches by a good margin.

If Nabers is unable to play on Sunday, attention will spin to veteran wideout Darius Slayton. In the two games Nabers missed, Slayton recorded his season-high of 122 receiving yards against the Seattle Seahawks.

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Saints won’t abandon the Taysom Hill package even without Hill

Taysom Hill is out for the season, but the Saints plan to continue using plays designed for him with a committee in his absence:

There’s a reason they call Taysom Hill a Swiss army knife. He contributed to the New Orleans Saints offense in a variety of ways before going down with a season ending injury last week.

How do you replace someone like that? Despite not having Hill for the remainder of the season, Darren Rizzi doesn’t plan on abandoning the Taysom Hill game plan even without Taysom Hill.

The difference will be how the Saints approach that portion of the playbook. You’ll never find a replica of Hill. As Rizzi said, “I don’t know if there’s another guy in the league who can do what he does.”

New Orleans is going with a committee approach. We’ve seen this before when Hill was injured, with guys like Alvin Kamara, Juwan Johnson, and Adam Prentice doing different things he’d normally be responsible for. Rizzi continued, “All the plays and different packages and things we run are going to have to be distributed differently.”

The most unique aspect of Hill’s game is his ability to run from a direct snap. New Orleans has no plans to discard this aspect of the offense either. Rizzi put it plainly: “We’re going to have that stuff still in the game plan.”

Rizzi didn’t want to disclose much, but he did reveal they’re trying out a few players in that role and “take a look at how it looks this week.”

Replacing Hill is no easy feat. How New Orleans replaces him will be one of the more interesting storylines to close out the season.

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Taysom Hill carted off after big hit vs. Rams

Taysom Hill was carted off after a big hit against the Los Angeles Rams. The New Orleans Saints star is a huge loss:

This isn’t what you want to see. New Orleans Saints do-it-all tight end Taysom Hill went down with an injury late in Week 13’s game with the Los Angeles Rams, leaving the game on a medical cart after initially being evaluated on the field.

Hill had taken a direct snap out of shotgun and ran to the left, picking up just enough yards to convert a fresh set of downs in Los Angeles territory. But he collided with several players on his way to the turf. Hill’s helmet collided with his teammate Cesar Ruiz’s shoulder pad, but the more serious injury appeared to be his left leg getting trapped between a couple of Rams defenders as it hit a helmet.

His return was officially announced as doubtful. Hill raised a fist to the crowd chanting his name as players from both teams wished him well. Hopefully he makes a clean recovery and this wasn’t as bad as it looked.

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Saints starting offensive lineman carted off with injury vs. Rams

New Orleans Saints left guard Nick Saldiveri was carted off with an injury against the Los Angeles Rams. They were already down two starting offensive linemen:

This isn’t a loss the New Orleans Saints could afford. Second-year left guard Nick Saldiveri was filling in for Lucas Patrick against the Los Angeles Rams when his left leg buckled under him during a play, leaving the young pro grasping at his knee as team medical staff attended to him.

Saldiveri was carted off for further evaluation. That made him the third interior lineman to miss this game due to injury; both Patrick and starting center Erik McCoy were preemptively ruled out on the inactive list. Unfortunately for Saldiveri, this is a bit of a pattern for him. He’s dealt with calf and shoulder issues ever since the Saints drafted him out of Old Dominion and tasked him with learning left guard after a college career spent mostly at right tackle.

So their depth was being tested by the Rams. Veteran backup Landon Young stepped in to the left guard spot to relieve Saldiveri, though undrafted rookie Kyle Hergel was also an option. We’ll have to wait and see whether this injury was as serious as it looked.

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Rashid Shaheed takes first steps forward in his recovery process

Rahshid Shaheed shared a video of his recovery from meniscus surgery. He’s taken the first steps forwards in his return to the field in 2025:

New Orleans Saints wide receiver, Rashid Shaheed has reached a major milestone. On Friday evening, Shaheed posted a clip on Instagram of him walking. This video documents the first steps that he has taken without assistance since getting the surgery

There’s two things you’ll notice from the short clip. Shaheed is walking without any sort of brace on, and he’s walking at a pretty good pace for a guy only six weeks removed from knee surgery.

Shaheed injured his knee against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 7. Shortly after that, the wide receiver underwent meniscus surgery and was placed on season ending injured reserve.

He won’t return this season, of course, but Shaheed appears to be making a speedy recovery. He’s one of two wide receivers who my be out for the season. The jury is still out on whether Chris Olave will return from a concussion that also put him on injured reserve.

There may not be a position group more impacted by injuries than the wide receiver room.

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Saints rule one starter out ahead of Week 13 game vs. Rams

The Saints will be without a starting offensive lineman again versus the Rams. Here’s their final injury report for Week 13:

On Friday, the New Orleans Saints handed a few injury updates ahead of their matchup against the Los Angeles Rams, some good and some bad.

On a negative note, Erik McCoy will be a game time decision on Sunday. The leader of the offensive line injured the same groin that landed him on injured reserve earlier this season. Lucas Patrick will miss his third consecutive game with a calf injury, as he was already ruled out.

Positively, Foster Moreau doesn’t have an injury designation despite being limited in practice the entirety of the week. New Orleans is low on receiving talent, and Moreau gives Derek Carr another player he can trust.

Jamaal Williams was the only player whose designation changed throughout the week. Williams was limited on Wednesday and elevated to a full participant at Friday’s practice. The Saints didn’t practice on Thursday.

The best news is arguably the return of Tanoh Kpassagnon from his Achilles injury. He along with McCoy and Williams are listed as questionable for Sunday’s game.

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Saints’ best offensive lineman will be a gametime decision vs. Rams

Erik McCoy re-aggravated his groin injury versus the Browns, and the Saints center will be a gametime decision versus the Rams:

The absence of Erik McCoy from the beginning of the Week 3 contest against the Philadelphia Eagles until Week 11 against the Cleveland Browns is the biggest blow the New Orleans Saints took this season.

That injury was compounded with other injuries to the interior offensive line, but it felt McCoy’s injury was the most crippling of the bunch. Why are we rehashing the past?

McCoy re-aggravated his groin injury in his first game back. Darren Rizzi labeled McCoy as a gametime decision versus the Los Angeles Rams. The concern about this announcement comes on two fronts.

One, the Saints would be without their best offensive lineman and the leader of that unit. We saw the impact of his absence once, and there should be fear his absence could have a similar impact again.

Secondly, Rizzi exuded confidence about McCoy playing when asked about the center’s health after the Browns game. This would suggest things aren’t progressing as well as hoped.

You don’t want to rush him out there if he isn’t ready. He’s already injured the groin twice, so you want to step carefully here. If McCoy can’t go, it’ll be Shane Lemieux who would fill in at center.

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