May 5, 2026, 9:48 a.m. CT
Entering the 2025 NFL season, there was plenty of intrigue around the quarterback situation of the New Orleans Saints. Having selected 25-year-old Tyler Shough at pick No. 40 in the draft, many questioned the future under center for the Saints. Would Shough become the team’s QB1 or would Spencer Rattler emerge as the clear-cut starter?
As the story goes, both transpired. Rattler started for the first half of the season before the Saints’ second-round pick emerged as the quarterback of the future in New Orleans. Shough’s stats across nine games weren’t exactly MVP-caliber — recording 10 touchdowns against six interceptions, with another three scores coming on the ground — but he led the team to five of their last eight wins, including a late four-game win streak that brought them within two games of a playoff appearance.
The front office recognized that a future with Shough under center is likely and that he’d need plenty of weapons around him for future years. So, the Saints spent big to acquire star running back Travis Etienne Jr. and bolstered the offensive line with veteran guard David Edwards. New Orleans went on to draft heavily on the offensive end of the ball and, as FOX Sports’ Greg Auman recently wrote, it’s time for Shough to take a step up in his second season:
“In the last two years, the Saints have totaled 40 touchdown passes. Only four teams have fewer, and all four (Las Vegas Raiders, Tennessee Titans, Cleveland Browns, New York Giants) have gone 8-26 or worse in those two seasons. Shough needs to take a step forward and get this offense back to where it averaged 27 touchdown passes per season in the first three years after Drew Brees’ retirement, even while starting six different quarterbacks.”
The now-26-year-old quarterback will have plenty of eyes on his Year 2 performance with hopes of a Brees-like impact on the Saints. The organization has sent a clear message to Shough and the rest of the NFC South that it’s time to get back to their old winning standards — and they plan to do so with Shough at the helm.
Arye Pulli, Saints Wire
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