Derek Carr injury: Report reveals Saints plan between Spencer Rattler, Jake Haener

Spencer Rattler is in line to take over as the starting quarterback for the New Orleans Saints following an oblique injury to Derek Carr. Mike Garafalo of NFL Network reported Tuesday that the rookie out of South Carolina is a “strong candidate” to fill the role while Carr recovers.

Carr is expected to miss multiple weeks after suffering the injury Monday against the Chiefs, setting the stage for Rattler to make his first NFL start when the Saints face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday.

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The report that Rattler is the frontrunner to start is surprising after second-year quarterback Jake Haener entered the game when Carr exited with injury Monday night. The Fresno State product was only 2-of-7 passing, however, and it seems the Saints want to see what they have in their rookie instead.

Rattler was taken in the fifth round of the 2024 NFL Draft has has yet to appear in any games during the regular season. He finished the preseason 20-of-38 (52%) passing for 202 yards and one touchdown while also recording a rushing TD.

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Rattler played the final two seasons of his college career at South Carolina and led the Gamecocks to a 13-12 record in that span. The former five-star prospect threw for 6,212 yards and 37 touchdowns with 20 interceptions in Columbia.

Spencer Rattler was at one point during his college career thought to be a potential first-round pick. However, he fell in draft boards after being benching during his redshirt sophomore season at Oklahoma and could never quite make up the ground lost. He’ll look to show why he was at one point such a highly regarded prospect with this opportunity.

New Orleans has lost three straight games after getting off to a 2-0 start to the year. It will hope Rattler can be enough to turn things around when it faces the Buccaneers at 1 p.m. ET on Sunday.