Derek Carr contract

Derek Carr said he wasn’t going to do anyone any favors or take a pay cut.

He told the truth.

See, that’s the thing. Derek Carr always tells the truth — or at least his truth — and you have to respect him for that. There were thoughts about getting him to take a pay cut, and at one point it sounded like he was considering the concept … or at least it was thought that he was considering it. But, ultimately, Carr stuck to his truth and he’ll get his money and the stats say he’ll take home $40 million in cash this year. That’s big-time guac.

There’s also another truth.The Saints ended up exercising Section 6 in Carr’s contract, the one that allowed them to restructure Carr’s deal without any further agreement. Things played out like this because there was no cooperation on the other side of the table. There were even rumors swirling that Carr wanted the freedom to explore his options — that he wanted out, and not the other way around. He might have even worked with them to make it happen.

That last sentence isn’t something we have all the details on, but it’s strong enough to say it here. And it sets up for an interesting future between the two sides.

That’s what happened. No pay cuts. No further agreements. Pay the price or eat the massive cap hit. The Saints like the quarterback. The plan is to have him on the roster. There’s no doubt about it. Kellen Moore called him to say it just this week.

You can’t blame Carr for his approach. He’s honoring his contract. There’s nothing wrong with that. He’s getting paid and getting his money for his family and his kids. He plays a dangerous sport and puts his body at risk. He got hurt and missed time last year.

This is probably his last major contract if things don’t drastically change, so he probably made the right move for him by getting all of his money. Not everyone is from here — actually or honorarily. Tyrann Mathieu? He’ll give back money one day and then go help recruit free agents the next. Cam Jordan — same deal. Other people? Not everyone sees it the same way.

That’s OK. There would be a ton of reasons for Carr to play ball. Giving a little back would have helped build a better roster. Giving a little back would have maybe helped the Saints get better blocking and better pass catching. Giving back a little probably would have eased tensions between him and this fan base, even as a symbolic gesture. That isn’t going to happen.

And that’s fine! You don’t have to be all those things to win football games or get cheers from the crowd. But there is always going to be a division between Carr and the city, and I’m not even sure that news of him doing something to help the team field a better roster for the city would have changed it … but it could have. And now that will never happen.

Now, these sides are together for another year. Maybe the quarterback will like playing for a Super Bowl-winning coach and decide this is the right situation for him. This is a period of transition and things haven’t really quite worked out how anyone would hope so far.

But the Saints believe they’re better with Carr than without him. The people watching are exhausted of it all — and who can blame them? But winning some games would heal a lot.

In the short term, restructuring Carr buys the team some flexibility to add talent and to build a culture that doesn’t include losing 13 or 14 games right out of the gate. It also gives the Saints some more time to try to find their next quarterback.

It’s easy to tell someone else to give back money, so I’ll never blame a player for getting every dollar he can get. Carr had the leverage here because of how the Saints manage their cap, and he used it. Fair game. Teams will cut a guy and break a contract whenever they want without any apology. So, can’t be mad at Carr.

But this did feel like an opportunity to heal something, to make the situation better, to offer a hand, not to the team, but to the city. See, it’s different here. City. Team. Team. City. People from here know they’re one and the same. Anyways, that didn’t happen. And it’s too bad. People are going to be even more disenchanted and disheartened and disappointed. They’re going to boo louder. They’re going to bring up Chipotle and the Super Bowl no-show and dream about the backup quarterbacks. Well, quarterback.

Peter Finney once called Mike Ditka a “visitor to New Orleans.” That feels like it fits here. At least for now. Carr might not even be interested in connecting with the fan base at this point. He might just be here to play football and get stats and try to win games. If he connects with his teammates and his coaches, and that leads to better production, that’s ultimately all that matters.

So, Derek Carr didn’t take a pay cut or adjust his deal. He told the truth. But that might have cost him something else, something he’ll never even know he’s missing because he never figured out how to earn it.

And now, maybe never will.