Before the New York Jets traded for Aaron Rodgers, they were in hot pursuit of Derek Carr, but he had a clear reason to pass up the New England Patriots rival.
The Jets were committed last offseason to find a high-end quarterback following two disaster seasons from Zach Wilson. Carr was one of the top signal-callers on the market, and there seemed to be growing momentum that the former Las Vegas Raiders QB would move out east. But that didn’t end up being the case.
“I was not asking for as much money as whatever your market is,” Carr said on “Pardon My Take” this week. “I don’t wanna do that because wherever I go I want to win and so use the money. I don’t care. That situation, I remember sitting there with (Robert) Saleh, he’s like, ‘Look man, we’d love to have you. It’s up to you.’ I was like, ‘I would love to make that decision right now,’ because Robert Saleh, I am probably his biggest fan. I absolutely, 10-out-of-10 would run through a wall for him even if he’s not my coach.
“That whole situation, that was the hardest thing. … I remember going there and I promised myself I had to go through the process because I didn’t want to sign and think well, what did that team think or what could they do? It was a weird situation, but at the same time, trading for Aaron wasn’t a guarantee for them at the time.”
Carr felt it “wasn’t the right time” to sign with New York, so he chose the New Orleans Saints. The Jets worked a deal to acquire Rodgers but not before they reportedly made a wild pitch to Carr. Neither transaction worked out well last season.
It would have made things interesting for the Jets if they had a competent quarterback after Rodgers suffered his Achilles injury and if Carr could have helped New York reach its goals.
