"Tyler Shough: From Underdog to New Orleans Saints' New Star"

New Orleans Saints 2024 fifth-round draft pick Spencer Rattler had surprisingly emerged as the favorite for the starting quarterback job over rookie Tyler Shough and 2023 fourth-rounder Jake Haener.

For a piece published Friday, Saints wide receiver Rashid Shaheed spoke with Sports Illustrated's Gilberto Manzano about how Shough began "thinking less and allowing his pass catchers to make plays" leading up to New Orleans' preseason opener at the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday. 

"Even at his age, he has to learn to be at the same pace that we are, and I feel like he’s taking it just fine," Shaheed said about Shough, who will turn 26 in September. "I feel like [his experience] is a good reason why we brought him in. He has that leadership, and he’s played a lot of football in his career." 

To compare, Rattler is 24 and shares a birthday with Shough (Sept. 28). Haener will be 26 during the 2025 campaign. 

From the start of spring workouts through the early days of training camp, many assumed that first-year head coach Kellen Moore had Shough penciled in atop the depth chart. While the Saints made Shough the 40th overall pick of this year's draft, Moore had nothing to do with bringing either Rattler or Haener to New Orleans. 

That said, both DraftKings Sportsbook (-260) and FanDuel Sportsbook (-196) had Rattler as the betting favorite to start the Saints' Week 1 game versus the Arizona Cardinals on Sept. 7 over Shough (+180, +162 odds) as of Friday afternoon. It will be interesting to see how those odds shift following Sunday's exhibition at SoFi Stadium.

"I’m just staying in their ear, letting [the three quarterbacks] know to stay confident and to just trust us," Shaheed added about how he's handling the competition. "Trust the guys around you to make the plays for you, and that’s going to be the biggest thing throughout the season with these young guys."

 

Shough is no stranger to dealing with setbacks, as he suffered serious injuries each college season from 2021 through 2023. How he bounces back from what Manzano referred to as "up-and-down practice performances" will determine if he spends the season's first week on the field or as a spectator.