The New Orleans Saints have officially ruled out quarterback Derek Carr

NEW ORLEANS – New Orleans Saints quarterback Derek Carr has been ruled out for Sunday’s game against the Washington Commanders.

Carr, previously considered questionable, has a left hand injury and was placed in the protocol for a concussion the week before the game.

This will be the fourth game Carr will miss this season after sitting out three games with an oblique injury. Rookie quarterback Spencer Rattler started those three games in place of Carr, but the Saints opted to start second-year quarterback Jake Haener against Washington.

Saints interim coach Darren Rizzi said Carr is progressing “really well” in the concussion protocol and only has one more step left to complete. The team was still considering Friday whether Carr could potentially be active and back up Haener against the Commanders or inactive and listed as the third emergency quarterback.

“We are not ruling Derek out for this game at the moment. We’ll see how his hand develops and how it improves,” Rizzi said Friday. “We can either make him the backup quarterback, make him active for the game or make him the emergency third… If he’s functional and capable, that’s a possibility.”

The Saints also activated defensive tackle Tanoh Kpassagnon from injured reserve. Kpassagnon was out the entire fall after tearing his Achilles tendon in the spring, and this is his first game of the season.