Derek Carr and Darren Waller watch Week 7: Waller shines while Carr takes heat

Waller continues to have strong performances while Carr continues to struggle

It was a tale of different two games for a couple of former Las Vegas Raiders in Week 7. Derek Carr and the New Orleans Saints suffered another loss—their second in as many weeks—on Thursday Night Football. Meanwhile, Darren Waller and the New York Giants pulled off a minor upset over the Washington Commanders as Waller had another strong performance.

Derek Carr

• Stats: 33/55, 301 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT, 3 carries, 14 rushing yards
• Game result: 31-24, Saints lose

While Carr had a better second half, he looked pretty bad in the first which was a big reason why New Orleans had to battle back from a two-possession fourth-quarter deficit. Part of it is because the game was on primetime, but the quarterback has faced quite a bit of scrutiny after the game. He was visibly angry on the field and appeared to be deflecting blame on his teammates, and Carr’s comments after the game didn’t help matters. But what might be the most concerning reaction to New Orleans’ loss is wide receiver Michael Thomas seemingly throwing the blame back on the quarterback with the tweet below. It seems like some finger-pointing is going on in the Big Easy.

NFC South Standings:

1. Atlanta 4-3 (Point differential: -18)
2. Tampa Bay 3-3 (-1)
3. New Orleans 3-4 (+6)
4. Carolina 0-6 (-74)

The Falcons beating the Buccaneers yesterday helps keep the Saints afloat in the race for the division crown. Carr and company are still just a game back of the NFC South lead and have winnable games against the Colts, Bears and Vikings before heading to Atlanta at the end of next month.

Darren Waller

• Stats: 7 catches: 98 yards, 1 TD
• Game result: 14-7, Giants win

It certainly wasn’t a pretty win for the Giants and this will probably go down as too little, too late, but they got the job done and pulled off the upset as a field goal underdog. Waller was a big reason why as he led the team in receiving with five more catches and 23 more yards than anyone else. He’s up to 35 receptions for 383 yards on the season, which ranks tied for fourth and second, respectively, among tight ends in 2023.

NFC East standings:

1. Philadephia 6-1 (Point differential: +45)
2. Dallas 4-2 (+54)
3. Washington 3-4 (-50)
4. New York 2-5 (-89)

While the Giants did pick up a game on the Commanders to be a little closer to climbing out of last place, they still aren’t anywhere near striking distance of the playoffs. In fact, New York is tied with Chicago, New England and Denver for the third-wost record in the league.