Expert explains why Saints shouldn't have drafted QB Tyler Shough

The New Orleans Saints pulled off one of the surprises of the 2025 NFL Draft. 

The Saints have a long-term need at quarterback. Sitting at pick No. 40 in Round 2, they had a few interesting options — including Colorado's Shedeur Sanders or Ohio State's Will Howard — but they went with Louisville quarterback Tyler Shough. 

It was a surprising pick. Nobody saw Shough going ahead of Sanders (who ended up as a fifth-rounder), and not everybody liked the pick.

Pro Football Focus analyst Trevor Sikkema suggested that Shough was a reach and that the Saints should have instead went with a player like Boston College defensive end Donovan Ezeiruaku instead. Ezeiruaku went four picks later to the Dallas Cowboys.

"I was not big on Tyler Shough, who ranked 133rd on my big board, and the Saints took him at pick No. 40. Even with the quarterback position tax, that is a reach," Sikkema wrote. "The need for a quarterback is understandable, as Derek Carr is dealing with a shoulder injury, but Shedeur Sanders, Will Howard or even Riley Leonard should have been considered before Shough — though I would have only considered Sanders at No. 40."

At 25 years old, Shough is going to be a very old rookie in the NFL. He spent six years at the college level and played for Oregon and Texas Tech before finishing his career at Louisville. He threw for 3,195 yards and 23 touchdowns with six interceptions last season for the Cardinals.

He's not much of a running threat, but it's worth noting that he fits the mold of a NFL pocket-passer at 6-foot-5, 225 pounds.

The Saints clearly felt he had the intangibles to be their future starting quarterback, and at the very least, he has plenty of experience and maturity for a rookie quarterback.

Still, most seem to think that Shough at No. 40 was a massive reach by the Saints, and that includes PFF. He'll get a chance to prove his doubters wrong, but he'll be a highly criticized pick if he doesn't pan out for New Orleans.