Derek Carr Week 2 Press Conference
Derek Carr talks with the media about the Saints offense and playing on Monday Night Football, as well as other topics.
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00:00 >> When you guys are able to kind of move Chris around the formation and
00:05 kind of use some of these different parts of the field,
00:09 what does that allow you to do?
00:11 What does that bring you?
00:16 >> Yeah, he's a very versatile player.
00:18 He can run, we talked about all off season, I was really impressed,
00:21 not with just the speed, but his ability to be able to move and run different things.
00:25 And he's a special player that you can do certain things with and use as a,
00:30 I don't wanna say decoy, but someone to bring attention.
00:34 He's also someone you can do certain things with and
00:36 know that he's getting the ball.
00:38 The fact that he'll do the dirty work, he'll block,
00:41 he'll do all those things that more selfless start guys can be.
00:45 He's a premier example of that, is he'll do anything and
00:49 everything to make sure to help us win, and I think it helps us win.
00:52 >> And especially like that first one you had him running out of the backfield,
00:57 I mean you had him lined up on Harold Landry.
00:59 >> Yeah. >> I imagine you take that just about
01:01 every time in those kind of matchups.
01:02 >> Yeah, absolutely, and that's a great job by Pete and RC and
01:05 our staff getting matchups and different things like that.
01:09 I'm sure teams will have to prepare and plan for that kind of stuff now.
01:12 And is they gonna come up field and hit him now?
01:16 You just try and think outside the box from our point of view and
01:20 what could teams do to try and stop that and how can we benefit from that?
01:24 >> Derek, I know you guys probably feel like you left a few points on the field.
01:28 What were some of the things that were easily correctable to make sure that
01:32 you score the way you want to?
01:33 >> Yeah, most of the time, the more you get to know me too,
01:36 it may get frustrating, but I keep most of it in house.
01:39 We know certain things, and I can tell you that there were things that we talked
01:43 about, I always talk about myself.
01:45 There's a couple plays there where I left points on the field and
01:48 we talked about after the game.
01:50 And I think it's just getting the decision making, the timing,
01:54 all those things that each position has to make as offense.
01:58 All 11 guys have to do the right thing for a play to work.
02:00 And on defense, typically, if you have a good pass rush and
02:05 someone, you can work out.
02:07 So us as an offense, I think executing at such a high level is gonna take all 11
02:11 guys doing the right thing every single time.
02:13 And I think that'll help us with scoring touchdowns and things like that.
02:17 >> And the protection is something, a combined effort with the offensive line
02:21 and the quarterback, what did y'all talk about after the game,
02:23 and looking to head to Carolina?
02:25 >> Yeah, I mean, what we know going into this game, they have a great, great rush.
02:30 They have guys that can perform inside on both edges, everywhere, the blitzes.
02:37 They got great scheme, great defense coordinator.
02:40 And we know the problems it presents to us.
02:44 And hopefully, a lot of it was first half stuff, and
02:48 we were able to come back in the second half and do some things well, and
02:51 do some things right.
02:53 But there's still things that, again, in-house that we know we wanna clean up and
02:57 do certain things.
02:57 And I'll always be hard on myself, could I have gotten that out,
03:00 could I have stepped this way and done this, and all that kind of stuff too.
03:03 >> Does it help at all having gone up against their D.C.'s defense a couple
03:07 times last year, to come over from Denver?
03:09 >> Yeah, yeah, I mean, it helps, but also,
03:12 he has different players, he can put them in different spots.
03:17 A lot of these guys that come from that tree have different,
03:22 multiple things that they can do to cause problems in the run game.
03:25 They have different things they can do to cause problems.
03:28 In the past game, in your protection plan, keeping your back in and
03:31 things like that, they do a great job.
03:34 And so yeah, there's some similarities, yeah, there's some carryover.
03:36 But every game I ever play, yes, there's similarities.
03:39 But even if you play them, there's always chess moves, always those things.
03:44 So hopefully, your rules take care of a lot of things, and your preparation and
03:50 your experience can help as well with some of that stuff.
03:53 >> Here, what allowed you to have as much kind of faith and
03:57 confidence in Rasheed as you had after kind of being robbed of some time to work
04:02 with him this offseason?
04:03 >> Yeah, I think just the times that he was out there, he proved over and
04:07 over again the kind of competitor that he is.
04:10 Obviously, the talent, we all see the talent.
04:12 But the kind of competitor, the guy that when the game is on the line,
04:17 you need someone to make a play.
04:19 You trust guys that are tough, you trust guys that are selfless.
04:22 They'll do whatever it takes for the team.
04:23 If we asked Rasheed right there to come in and nudge the defensive end and
04:28 let Chris go run that ball, he would have done it with everything.
04:31 And when you have guys like that, that's gonna help us win.
04:36 And it's just guys making that decision, what's important to you?
04:39 And he shows every day that winning is important to him.
04:42 And you can just feel that off of him.
04:45 And I've been around guys like that where we've had a lot of named guys.
04:48 And then it's that one guy that you haven't heard too much about that always
04:50 would make that play.
04:51 It's just cuz he showed time and time after game that he was a team guy and
04:55 that he wanted to make that play.
04:56 And he'd do whatever the coach asked him, whatever the quarterback asked him.
04:59 >> Derek, I've just seen the package where they kind of broke down that last
05:03 moment there with that go around.
05:04 What made you so confident in running the kill in that scenario?
05:08 >> A lot of different things.
05:09 I don't wanna get too much into what my mind was thinking.
05:11 [LAUGH] Scenario, just talking football is like,
05:18 obviously if we run the ball, they can call their time out.
05:22 If we throw something short, they think completion.
05:26 It's a risky thing to take a shot there.
05:27 It is, cuz they could keep a time out in their pocket.
05:32 They can have more time on the clock cuz the clock's not running.
05:34 All those things that they can go through your head.
05:37 And there's a lot more that went into it, but just the confidence I have in Rashid and
05:44 the confidence that the coaches showed in us was really cool to me.
05:47 >> Did you see the way it was presented on NFL Films?
05:49 >> I did, yeah.
05:50 >> And so when you told Rashid, freaking run,
05:53 what exactly were you trying to get across there?
05:56 No, I'm kidding, but seriously.
05:57 That should be unspoken, right?
05:59 Why did you feel the need to say that in that way at that time?
06:02 >> Well, yeah, on the play, there's different reads.
06:05 I could have gone to four other options.
06:08 And past receivers that I've played with have always laughed at me.
06:19 Cuz there's times where I'll look at them and go, run, I need you.
06:22 And sometimes it is just to get a clear out, but
06:24 I want them to think they're getting the ball so it looks real.
06:25 >> [LAUGH] >> And so I do say those things.
06:29 But I do it to, hey, I need you here.
06:31 And you may not get it, right?
06:33 If they end up covering it, they end up doubling, I'm not pwning it,
06:35 I'm gonna go to the next read, I'm gonna go to the next read.
06:37 But I just wanted to alert him that, and again,
06:41 he's not a guy that I need to alert to run, cuz that's what he does.
06:44 But I just wanted to make sure that he knew that this could be his moment.
06:47 >> Derek, I know Frank spoke really loathingly about you yesterday.
06:51 I think you met with them in the offseason.
06:53 And then there was a time before they considered trading up with you,
06:55 that you met with them as a free agent.
06:57 Just maybe things work out how they're supposed to, but just how did that go?
07:00 And how maybe real was he becoming a Carolina Panther and
07:04 possibly playing for him?
07:05 >> Yeah, well, I didn't take any meeting with anybody that I didn't think was real.
07:08 And again, I was gaining all of my information,
07:12 they were gaining all of theirs, just like everyone that I met with was.
07:16 And it was very, very real.
07:20 Coach Wright knows how I feel about him.
07:22 And I know how he feels about me, and the feelings are mutual, and
07:27 the respect is there, and all those things, and it's great.
07:29 And they make business decisions, I have to make a business decision.
07:35 And there's so many moving parts,
07:37 while other teams are trying to make moving part business decisions.
07:39 So there was a lot that went into it, maybe we'll talk about it sometime.
07:42 But yeah, it was a real possibility, absolutely.
07:45 Just the way things worked out, I ended up being here, and
07:48 this is what my wife and I decided to be and wanted to be.
07:51 >> Aaron, what can you look forward to these Monday nights?
07:53 >> I love them, I mean, you grew up as a kid.
07:55 I mean, I know it is my 10th year, but I still think of when I was a kid,
07:58 like some of the first Monday night football games I would watch.
08:02 Even as I got older, watching Michael Beck,
08:04 I remember them putting that line down on the field.
08:07 And he's running around, I'm jumping on my couch, thinking I'm Michael Beck.
08:10 I never ran a 4-3, but I like to pretend that I could.
08:13 I just remember watching Deon returning, bunts, interceptions, all these things.
08:18 I mean, I just, so many memories.
08:19 Like someday, man, I just wanna be out there.
08:21 And then the fact that you get to do it, you never wanna,
08:24 I don't wanna say it like it loses anything, cuz it's still Monday night.
08:27 But as the years go on, if you're just so
08:29 focused on everything else, you forget how cool it is that you get to do that.
08:32 And so for me, every chance I get to play on a prime time game,
08:36 I always take a second to go, this is some of the stuff I dreamed of as a kid.
08:40 This is pretty cool.
08:41 And so you always wanna prepare your best, make sure you prepare your best for
08:44 the forward.
08:44 >> You talked about playing against Aiden when you were young.
08:47 I mean, I guess him giving you all the advice and such.
08:49 Do you tell Bryce anything before, after, maybe not before, but
08:52 after the game, or kind of just young player that just got into this league?
08:56 >> There's a couple young guys that I helped throughout the league.
08:59 And if they wanna talk about it, they can talk about it.
09:02 Bryce is another guy that I think the world of.
09:05 And I think he's gonna be great.
09:06 If you ever wanna help out, obviously help him.
09:08 Not too much, while we're rivals and things like that.
09:13 But there are a few quarterbacks in the league,
09:16 young guys that have reached out at different times in their careers that I've
09:21 talked to in similar situation scenarios, advice, whatever.
09:26 I'm an open book to everybody.
09:28 And so, but when we're competing against each other,
09:31 we're still trying to beat them.
09:33 >> What are the games that you just catch up in Alabama?
09:35 I've just gotten to watch, I see a couple of them,
09:36 just kind of have the initial impression of them.
09:38 >> Yeah, cuz they're always at the end of the year.
09:40 Alabama's always winning, so you get to watch those games.
09:43 So you just love, what I love is watching his teammates and
09:47 how they feel about him, how they rally around him.
09:50 Very accurate, you're never not the first pick for a reason.
09:56 He obviously has all the talent in the world.
09:59 And he's gonna continue to grow.
10:00 He's gonna be a heck of a player.
10:03 I can't wait to watch that maturation process and all those things.
10:06 And we have our battles and stuff like that.
10:08 But I think the world of him.
10:10 And I wish him the best except when he plays us.
10:13 >> This is our first time around you.
10:14 I'm sure you saw a lot of people talking about bumping up,
10:17 including your brothers.
10:18 Was that done with a purpose in mind, like help your game and then somewhere?
10:22 >> Yeah, I got a four year old little boy that likes to test me.
10:26 So I know he's gonna be 18 someday.
10:30 >> [LAUGH] >> No, I mean,
10:33 this off season I just, I had a couple weeks extra of free time.
10:39 And so all I did was work out this off season.
10:43 I was running a lot, I was working out a lot.
10:45 Just making sure that if I got an opportunity somewhere else I was ready.
10:50 And was it a conscious effort?
10:53 I mean, yeah, absolutely.
10:54 I wanted to be in the best shape of my life wherever I showed up.
10:59 And hopefully I am.
11:01 >> Your off season was like a rocky one.
11:03 >> [LAUGH] >> Was it?
11:05 >> Yeah, we have this, in Bakersfield we have this, we call it the barn.
11:09 And we like to say that that's our rocky place to go work out.
11:12 So it's a lot of old weights, some rust.
11:16 You gotta get a shot or two if you go work out there and get a cut.
11:19 >> [LAUGH] >> But yeah, I mean,
11:21 we have a place like that that we like to get our work done.
11:25 >> Derrick, your red zone results or red zone performance was a popular
11:29 critique that came up when we did our research on you.
11:31 I can't remember if we ever asked you about it, but
11:33 what has been your own evaluation of whether that's an area of your game you've
11:37 had to improve or anything you've tried to?
11:39 >> I gotta be honest here, I'm always trying to improve at everything.
11:41 >> Sure.
11:41 >> I've thrown a lot of touchdowns in the red zone.
11:47 I've also had mistakes in the red zone.
11:49 And I do my best to make the best decision I ever played, even this past week.
11:56 Think of guys driving a ball, you throw it away.
11:59 And no matter what decision I make, nowadays everyone hits pause and
12:04 they critique for the next two days on what happened in a split second.
12:08 And that's the life that we live and that's okay, I understand that.
12:14 But for me, I try my best to make the best decision all the time.
12:18 And I'm sure there'll be a play in my life again in the red zone that I may
12:23 mess up, but I'm sure there's gonna be plenty where we throw a touchdown.
12:25 >> Yeah, well, I ask because I mean, that's natural to think.
12:31 It's just a different part of the field and
12:32 you're gonna have pluses and minuses, everything.
12:36 That is not an area where you have identified as something you've tried,
12:40 that's been a hump for you to get over or anything like that?
12:43 >> Every play is different.
12:45 Every game is different.
12:46 Every decision I make is different based on the scenario.
12:48 Sure, maybe there's one where someone's there, but in the headset,
12:54 hey, we got points here, just be smart.
12:56 Okay, it's tight, throw it away, we got points.
12:59 Yeah, sometimes you make a bad decision, sometimes you make good decisions.
13:03 All that stuff comes up.
13:04 Sometimes guys aren't even in the read or
13:06 the progression they happen to just pop open.
13:08 Like so many things happen where, again,
13:11 I'm always trying to make my best decision.
13:13 I don't feel any different over here than I do down here in the red zone.
13:16 I'm always confident and
13:19 I was just trying to make the best play for our team.
13:21 >> Did you throw a two or one in this last game?
13:24 In the red zone, the machine one that they didn't-
13:27 >> That's another one that everyone took
13:29 a picture.
13:31 Like his knee is in, I thought it was in.
13:33 I was talking trash to Vairball, he was in, he's like no he's not.
13:37 But I thought it was another one, but that's all right.
13:40 >> I think maybe- >> That was not a critique on a fish.
13:45 >> [LAUGH] >> I don't want a letter.
13:47 >> I think maybe people who aren't super familiar with the Saints,
13:52 maybe see Rashid as the undrafted guy, didn't get a lot of targets last year.
13:57 He's kind of the gadget guy, whatever the case may be.
14:00 Just in your experience with him, what's been, I guess,
14:04 your impression of him, just like the sophistication that you've received?
14:07 >> Yeah.
14:08 I think the world of him, I think he's a very smart player.
14:11 He can run all the routes, he can block.
14:13 You can hand it to him like you did last week, and he can get positive plays there.
14:18 You see his awareness, when coach told him to stay in bounds,
14:21 he didn't try and cut up and maybe get pushed out of bounds.
14:23 He just got his five yards and got down, made sure the clock was running.
14:27 You see the football's savviness from him on both sides.
14:33 He understands the game, and
14:35 God blessed him with some things that other people just don't have.
14:39 And I like to tease him that I'll race him all the time, but
14:42 I don't know if I really want to.
14:44 >> I've heard a couple people say his speed is different.
14:47 How does that really, I mean, on a football field where everybody's taking fast?
14:53 >> Yes. >> Yeah.
14:54 >> Yeah, yeah, there's only a few guys.
14:56 Henry Ruggs was another one where you could feel it.
14:58 Zay Jones is another guy where you can, when you see him next time, he's a guy.
15:04 Tyree Kill, obviously, I've seen him all those years in Kansas City.
15:08 Rashid's one of those guys that when he's running on the field,
15:12 it was like when I played at Oregon and
15:14 DeAnthony Thomas came running by for an 80 yard touchdown.
15:17 I was like, yeah, that's different.
15:18 You can just feel it.
15:20 And he's one of those guys when he takes off,
15:22 it's just a different gear that a lot of guys just don't have.
15:26 >> Yeah, I noticed the ball from that touchdown pass ended up in the stands.
15:29 Were you able to get it back?
15:30 >> No, I didn't want that one.
15:31 >> You didn't want that one?
15:32 >> I didn't want that one.
15:33 There's only one football I want.
15:35 That's why that win, I threw the ball, hopefully I didn't get in trouble, but
15:37 threw the ball in the stands.
15:38 There's only one ball I want, and it's none of those yet.
15:40 So I'll let you know when that time comes.
15:43 >> Derek, your pocket awareness, ability to clown the pocket, feel the rush.
15:48 How much of that is innate, intuitive?
15:50 How much is it a fundamental you can work on, or is it?
15:54 And have you gotten a lot better at that over with experience?
15:57 >> Yeah, I feel like I've gotten better at it.
15:59 You get a good feel for, especially everyone has a rush plan for
16:02 a quarterback.
16:03 So once you start feeling how people wanna rush you,
16:05 cuz you escape certain ways and things like that.
16:08 You can kinda get a feel where they're putting their bodies,
16:10 what games they like to run.
16:11 I mean, there's a lot of experience that goes into that too.
16:13 But I feel like it's just something, cuz you're never looking down.
16:17 It's always a feel.
16:18 You see the front, you make the call, then you're reading the defense.
16:21 And then you have to feel after that as you're looking down field.
16:23 And sometimes, you see one's coming for you,
16:25 you know you're gonna have to buy a little time for
16:27 the next progression to show up.
16:29 There's different things.
16:30 I mean, you look at Pat Mahomes is one of the best at it.
16:33 Brady was one of the best in a different way, and
16:36 sitting in the pocket and doing his presence.
16:38 Aaron's another guy who I love watching, and
16:42 moving the pocket and different things.
16:44 And so making plays out on the perimeter.
16:46 So there's different ways to do it.
16:48 And for me, it's something I did.
16:50 I worked hard at, I used to just be a statue.
16:52 I'd just stand there, and I tried to get better at moving.
16:55 And I tried to get better at making plays outside the pocket,
16:58 completions on third downs and red zone stuff.
17:00 So I've always been trying to grow and learn from other guys for sure.
17:04 >> The play where you found Chris for the 40 yard game,
17:07 where you kinda climbed the pocket.
17:08 >> Yeah.
17:08 >> And that broke up, was that play designed to go to him, or
17:11 did it just pop open?
17:12 >> He was within the progression, but it was late in the progression.
17:15 >> Right. >> And so that's another one where
17:17 you saw Maher, I was about to come off, they passed it off, they passed it off,
17:20 and then I stepped up and there he was.
17:22 And so that was another one where, yeah, the pocket presence.
17:26 There's gonna be times where someone's gonna free up, I'm just gonna have to run.
17:29 There's other times where you just gotta hang out in there and
17:32 wait for a certain round.
17:33 >> How important is getting a run game going for you as a quarterback to try and
17:39 get that passing game in, especially on third downs?
17:42 Just how important is your run game success going forward?
17:45 >> Yeah, it's vital to take us where we wanna go.
17:49 And so all of our guys know how important it is and know how much it can help us.
17:55 So there's things that we did well in the game,
17:58 there's things we wanna correct for sure.
18:00 But my job in that is making sure we're ID'd right,
18:03 we're running good plays and good looks.
18:05 When they need me to check something, I'm checking the right thing and
18:07 all those things.
18:08 And so I try and do my part, everyone's trying to do their part to make sure that
18:12 we're on it.
18:13 But if we wanna go where we wanna go, that's gonna be a big part of it.
18:17 >> Derek, a big conversation that came out of week one game was protection.
18:21 You get to see the work going into that every single day.
18:23 Where's your confidence level at that level to take steps forward with game reps?
18:27 >> I'm very confident, yeah.
18:29 That happens a lot in week one too.
18:31 There's live bullets, new games, especially that front.
18:34 That front is amazing.
18:35 We got another really good front here.
18:37 So my mindset is always, Coach Gruden always told me, he was like, look,
18:41 I don't care whatever happens in front of you, relatively.
18:45 You just try and find a way, your best way to try and move the ball down the field.
18:49 And sometimes he would help me, sometimes I understand there's nothing you can do.
18:54 But just keep that mindset and that mentality that you're always gonna try and
18:57 move the ball no matter what happens.
18:58 But my mindset, no matter what, if I get hit, don't get hit, whatever,
19:02 I'm just playing football and I'm always just trying to move the ball.
19:05 And I try and keep that mindset to where I don't even care.
19:08 It's going great, great.
19:09 It's not, that's okay.
19:11 But my confidence level is always high in our guys,
19:13 especially with the talent we have in that room and
19:16 the things I've seen them do all offseason.