Derek Carr and Saints center Erik McCoy downplayed their on-field incident after Sunday’s NFL game against the Carolina Panthers. However, the heated argument may not have blown over as easily if they didn’t win by 22.
A new angle of the entire sequence has emerged. The video does not reflect well on the New Orleans offense!
Carr was sacked during the late third quarter while only up by eight. It forced a punt and quickly devolved into disarray.
The 32-year-old quarterback screamed in anger while laying on the ground. McCoy, who was forced to block down on the nose tackle — which prevented him from picking up the blitzing linebacker — did not appreciate Carr’s frustration.
He turned back and released a roar. His signal-caller responded with a few choice words of his own.
McCoy did not stop pushing forward. All 303 pounds of him continued to release his outrage upon Carr before teammate James Hurst was able to separate the two.
The hostility was palpable after the initial spat, but Erik McCoy and Derek Carr were able to move on. They sat next to each other on the bench during the fourth quarter while scoring 14 unanswered.
They also brushed things off as no big deal after the game.
A public disagreement deserves a public apology. So we talked about it already, person to person. Out loud, I want to say, “Derek Carr, I am sorry. I let my emotions get the best of me.”
— Erik McCoy
Both of them took responsibility but would not provide any further context on what caused the spat.
We were both right for an aspect, we were both wrong for an aspect, but that’s not the only time that’s ever happened between a player or an offensive lineman or a center. That stuff happens. Those moments are going to happen, you can have conflict sometimes, confrontation. Always circle back.
So we circled back, we looked at each other, we both smiled. We both already knew. But with all the cameras around that stuff gets caught sometimes. But it’s no problem. It’s all good.
— Derek Carr
Carr made it abundantly clear that there is no beef.
Me and Erik have no issue. In the moment, something happened. The reason doesn’t matter. Everybody wants to know the why. It doesn’t matter. We were both right, we were both wrong, at the same time, we both were like ‘My bad.’ … and that was it.
And I’ve done that with my two older brothers probably 50 times in my life, and it happens. When it’s in a frustrating moment and that kind of happens, it is intensified, as I’ve learned. Because people want to know ‘Oh no, what’s wrong?’
There really is nothing wrong. We had a moment. I’ve had moments in my 10 years a lot of times, with a coach, a teammate, somebody … and I always learned you circle back, you make it right and you keep going.
— Derek Carr
Head coach Dennis Allen was not worried.
I think if you’re ever in a highly competitive environment, and things aren’t going the way that you want it to go, yeah, there’s sometimes that you get frustrated,” Allen said. You lash out a little bit. I’m glad that both of them have the balls to at least stand up and fight, you know what I mean? … My wife and I argue. It happens. So let’s don’t make too much of it.
— Dennis Allen
All of this is great. Arguments happen. Teammates bicker. They move past it.
It still begs the question of how things would have gone if the Saints were not able to come out victorious. Winning is the cure to most things in the NFL. Getting two touchdowns on the board after the disagreement helps to speed up the “healing” process!