Derek Carr had an opportunity to potentially play for the Cincinnati Bengals but turned it down. Now we have a better understanding of the reason why he made his choice.
The Bengals last week acquired Joe Flacco in a trade with the Cleveland Browns. Cincinnati spoke with Carr prior to trading for Flacco to see if they could get him to come out of retirement and play for them.
David Carr, who is Derek’s older brother, spoke with ABC 30 in Fresno, Calif., to discuss the situation. He told Stephen Hicks that Derek didn’t want to go to a situation where there is an entrenched quarterback, such as Joe Burrow, waiting.
“Derek would like to be in a situation that obviously is a team that really needs a guy to come in and take em the long haul. There’s a feeling that maybe Joe Burrow might come back at some point this year — at least try to come back. I don’t know if Derek would feel comfortable being in a situation where say he was to enter in a team situation where the quarterback was hurt and he drove them all the way in, they got into the playoffs, and then he had to go sit on the sidelines,” David said.
“So I don’t think Derek would be interested in that scenario.”
The Bengals interest in Derek Carr is something his brother David hinted at with us last week.
— Stephen Hicks (@StephenABC30) October 15, 2025
"Derek will definitely be ready" –> https://t.co/AlO2IBp9bZ @ABC30 https://t.co/5nixLUa4Zl pic.twitter.com/JrjpbJzF9Q
Derek Carr retired surprisingly this offseason due to a shoulder injury that would have required surgery. He retired as a member of the New Orleans Saints, so any decision by him to come out of retirement would have had to be negotiated with New Orleans.
Carr finished with 2,145 passing yards, 15 touchdowns and 5 interceptions in 10 games last season. He has said he is happy in retirement, though he also recently noted that he has stayed in shape and is not totally ruling out a comeback. There is talk that Burrow could return from his turf toe injury in December.
