Derek Carr, quarterback of the New Orleans Saints, has faced adversity before and believes his offence is on the verge of breaking through.
‘We want to get back on track just as badly as everyone else does. We are aware of our capabilities.
Derek Carr has faced far worse in the NFL.
Worse, much worse.
In his inaugural season with the then-Oakland Raiders in 2014, the team lost its first ten games, the head coach (Dennis Allen) was sacked after four games, and the Raiders finished 3-13.
So, despite the New Orleans Saints are 2-2 heading into Sunday’s game versus the New England Patriots (1-3),
at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass., aren’t anywhere near peak efficiency on offense, Carr said the Saints have the personnel to overcome a slow start which has seen New Orleans average 15.5 points per game and drop its last two while totaling 26 points, including a punt return touchdown by Rashid Shaheed.
New Orleans is coming off a 26-9 loss on Sunday to Tampa Bay.
“I’ve been through tougher times than this,” Carr said Wednesday. “We’re going to be all right. We’ve got the right kind of people – I think that’s where it starts with, it’s a people business. And you’ve got to have the right kind of people.
“We have the proper people in this room. We have people who know what they’re doing, people who want to do it correctly, and people who can do it right. We want to get back on track just as much as everyone else does. We are aware of our capabilities.
“The best part is that we can just go out there and try to prove it again on Sunday.” Make the necessary tweaks and corrections based on what we’ve discussed. But we definitely have the proper individuals.”
Carr believes the Saints offence is on the verge of producing considerably more than it has in the past four games.
“You sit there and you watch the film, and then you go out to practise and we do the corrections better, and we feel better,” he told me. “We must never forget what we are capable of.”
“It’s easy to let it beat you up when it gets tough, especially early in the season.” But D.A. (Coach Dennis Allen) did an excellent job today of leading us and reminding us that we still have everyone and what it takes to achieve our goals. Let’s just do the things we spoke about doing better, and we did that today during practice. So, perhaps, this will lead to even more success on Sunday.”
Carr was limited in practice Wednesday, as he was last week, although he threw more this week than last, when he was rehabilitating from an AC joint sprain in his right shoulder that kept him out of the game against Green Bay in the third quarter, an 18-17 loss.
“He’s limited in practice and yet, I thought we got some good work with him this week, which I think is important,” Allen told reporters. “Things look good in terms of where he’s at heading into this week.”
“I feel much better this week than I did this time last week,” Carr told reporters. “It was a good thing.”
Take a step in the correct path. Obviously, nervous after a game, not knowing how it would go. “However, I’m doing better this week than I was last.”
INJURY REPORT: In addition to Carr, cornerback Paulson Adebo (hamstring) and centre Erik McCoy (knee) were limited participants in Wednesday’s practice. Safety Jordan Howden (finger) and Foster Moreau (ankle) both returned to practice and practiced fully. Left guard Andrus Peat (concussion), tight end Juwan Johnson (calf), safety Lonnie Johnson Jr. (hamstring), defensive tackle Bryan Bresee (sickness), tight end Jimmy Graham (rest) and right tackle Ryan Ramczyk (rest/foot) did not practice.
