Robert Saleh speaks on Derek Carr calls him a ‘tremendous young man’
We got to hear from Jets head coach Robert Saleh after all this week during the Scouting Combine. It was through Zoom, but still something. It was Saleh’s first time speaking to the media since talking after the team hired Nathaniel Hackett as offensive coordinator.
Of course, Saleh was asked about the team meeting with free-agent quarterback Derek Carr — a meeting Saleh was not able to join as he was sick, which explains why Saleh is not in Indianapolis this week.
Saleh spoke highly of Carr, calling him a “tremendous young man” and that the meeting went great.
“I thought it was great. He’s a tremendous young man. He’s a father of four, obviously. His mind is in the right spot, he keeps the main thing the main thing. A really impressive young man, for sure.”
Saleh shared his thoughts on Carr on and off the field like a scouting report as the Jets continue to wade through this process.
“He’s got an elite mental makeup with regards to football IQ. He’s got tremendous accuracy and arm strength. He can put the ball anywhere you want. He’s underrated in terms of a scrambler and being able to move out of the pocket and all that stuff. He’s been asked to do a lot in his career and you just look at him, I’ve said it before, I think he’s more in line with what Stafford’s career has been in terms of if you can just get him to a place that can surround him with all the pieces to allow him to just play quarterback 10-15 times a game, it would be pretty cool. He’s a solid young man.”
Saleh certainly would like a decision soon but also understands and respects the process.
“As a coach, you always want it done yesterday, right? We appreciate everyone’s process, we appreciate how everyone is going about it, we appreciate the time everyone needs. It’s just being deliberate in our process and making sure that we’re taking care of our stuff, but also being mindful and respectful for other people, too.”
There are still 13 days until the start of free agency but Carr is in a situation where he can sign at any time due to being released before the end of his contract. And with Aaron Rodgers still looming, there still looks to be some traveling to do on this path before reaching a conclusion.
