Honestly, if you only watched the first two weeks of the NFL season, you probably thought the New Orleans Saints QB 2024 situation was the greatest success story in modern football. Derek Carr looked like a wizard. Klint Kubiak, the new offensive coordinator, looked like a genius. They were putting up 40-point games like it was nothing. Then, the wheels didn't just fall off; the whole car basically disintegrated on the highway.
It’s easy to look at the final record and say the quarterback play was the problem. But that's kinda lazy. To really get what happened in the Big Easy this year, you have to look at the weird mix of elite efficiency, a literal "avalanche" of injuries, and a rookie who broke records while losing every single game he started.
The Derek Carr Paradox: Elite or Empty?
Derek Carr is a lightning rod for criticism, and 2024 didn't change that.
He started the season with the most efficient two-game stretch of his entire 161-game career. Against Carolina and Dallas, the Saints scored on their first nine possessions and first six possessions respectively. He was completing 77% of his passes. For a minute there, people were actually whispering "MVP" in the French Quarter.
Then came the oblique strain in Week 5 against the Chiefs.
When Carr is protected, he's a top-10 passer. The stats back this up. He finished his ten games in 2024 with 2,145 yards and 15 touchdowns. His true passer rating sat at a healthy 105.0. But the Saints' offensive line was a revolving door. By the time he hit the middle of the season, he was dealing with a strained groin, a concussion, and eventually that severe rotator cuff injury that led to his retirement announcement in early 2025.
It’s hard to blame a guy for "languishing" when he's playing through a body that’s basically held together by medical tape and willpower.
Spencer Rattler and the "Winning is a Team Stat" Problem
When Carr went down, the Spencer Rattler era began sooner than anyone expected.
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Rattler is a fascinating case study. He’s the guy most people got wrong this year. He actually set a Saints franchise record for rookie passing yardage with 1,317 yards in just seven appearances. He showed real "dual-threat" flashes, too, averaging over 8 yards per carry on his scrambles.
But here is the stat that hurts: the Saints were 0-6 in his starts.
Does that mean he played poorly? Not necessarily. He was sacked 22 times in those six starts. You’ve seen the tape—he was running for his life from the moment the ball was snapped. His best game wasn't even a start; it was coming off the bench against Washington in December, where he nearly rallied the team to a win, falling just short on a two-point conversion.
Rattler finished with:
- 130 completions on 228 attempts (57%)
- 4 touchdowns and 5 interceptions
- 1,317 passing yards
- 146 rushing yards
The kid has talent. He has a "live" arm. But 2024 was a trial by fire that would have scorched a veteran, let alone a fifth-round rookie.
The Jake Haener Factor
Then there's Jake Haener. The former Fresno State standout (just like Carr) found himself in a weird spot. He appeared in eight games but only got one official start.
Haener's numbers weren't pretty: a 46.2% completion rate and a passer rating of 62.6. He was mostly used as a "break glass in case of emergency" option when Rattler was struggling or Carr was headed to the blue medical tent. He did manage to throw his first career touchdown against Denver, which was a nice moment in an otherwise bleak October.
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By the end of the season, Haener was basically fighting for his roster spot. With the emergence of Tyler Shough late in the year (who actually snagged an Offensive Rookie of the Month nod), Haener ended up back on the practice squad. It’s a tough business.
Why the Klint Kubiak Offense Stalled
We have to talk about Klint Kubiak because his arrival was supposed to be the "fix."
He brought in the Shanahan-style outside zone, heavy play-action, and tons of pre-snap motion. In September, it worked. The Saints were generating "chunk" plays that they couldn't find with a map in 2023. Rashid Shaheed was catching 70-yard bombs, and Alvin Kamara was looking five years younger.
But this offense relies on a healthy offensive line and a stable quarterback.
When Erik McCoy went down at center, the whole system lost its pivot point. Without McCoy, the interior pressure was immediate. Carr couldn't set his feet, and Rattler didn't have the experience to navigate a collapsing pocket. Kubiak’s "strategic impact" became a survival exercise. It’s why the team's yardage per game plummeted from top-tier to 16th by the time Dennis Allen was fired in November.
The Dennis Allen Firing and the Pivot
The seven-game losing streak was the final nail. Losing to a struggling Carolina team in Week 9 was the tipping point.
Gayle Benson and Mickey Loomis had seen enough. Darren Rizzi took over as interim, and while the energy in the building changed, the quarterback health didn't magically improve. The 2024 season became a "lost year" of evaluation.
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What Real Experts Are Looking At Now
If you're trying to figure out where the Saints go from here, you have to acknowledge the limitations of the 2024 roster.
- The Retiring Vet: Derek Carr's retirement due to that rotator cuff issue changes everything. The Saints aren't just looking for a "bridge" anymore; they're in a full-blown rebuild at the most important position.
- The Rookie Ceiling: Is Spencer Rattler a starter or a high-end backup? 1,317 yards is impressive for a rookie in a bad situation, but the 0-6 record as a starter is a heavy weight to carry into an offseason.
- The Shough Factor: Tyler Shough’s late-season performance (1,316 yards in Dec/Jan) has complicated the hierarchy. He was more efficient than Rattler and more durable than Carr.
The 2024 New Orleans Saints QB situation was a rollercoaster that ended in a wreck, but it provided some vital data. It proved that the "win now" window with the aging core has officially slammed shut.
Actionable Insights for the Offseason
If you’re a Saints fan or just a degenerate looking at the 2026 futures, here is what you should actually be watching for.
Stop looking at the quarterback in a vacuum. The priority for New Orleans has to be the offensive line. No QB—not Carr, not Rattler, not even a prime Drew Brees—could have survived the pressure rates this team allowed in the middle of 2024.
Keep an eye on the coaching search. Whether Darren Rizzi keeps the job or they bring in a fresh face, the system needs to be tailored to a young, mobile QB. The days of the static pocket passer in New Orleans are over.
Finally, don't sleep on Tyler Shough. His Rookie of the Month honors at the end of the year weren't a fluke. He’s going into the next camp with a serious chance to be QB1, especially with Carr out of the picture. The "Rattler vs. Shough" battle will be the only thing that matters in Metairie this summer.