The Saints quarterback keeps stacking games.
Tyler Shough has turned some heads in his short time as the Saints starting quarterback. Sunday's win over the Tampa Bay Bucs in Tampa is the high point of his NFL career so far. For a team looking forward to the NFL Draft, somebody didn't tell that to Shough and the Saints, who are fighting hard in every game and not packing in the season at all.
Tanking is a myth in the NFL. Coaches and players can't "tank" or they will be out of work. The only thing that matters is your resume and what you put on film. The Saints players know that full well, as does Shough, who is fighting to remain the Saints quarterback for the future.
Pro Football Focus was very impressed with Shough's performance on Sunday. PFF named the former Louisville quarterback as the top rookie QB of Week 14.
Quarterback: Tyler Shough, New Orleans Saints – 83.7
The Buccaneers are fighting to keep their playoff hopes alive, but Tyler Shough and the Saints had other ideas as they pulled off the 24-20 upset. The rookie second-rounder out of Louisville had his best game as a pro and potentially has the organization rethinking the idea of taking a quarterback at the top of the first round of the 2026 draft.
Since being named the starter, Shough has posted a 70.0-plus PFF passing grade in four of the six starts, with another culminating in a 69.8 mark. Against Tampa Bay, Shough completed 15-of-22 passes for 157 yards with no touchdowns and an interception. However, the pick came on a miscommunication where the receiver ran a hitch route, while Shough threw a go.
On the season, Shough commands a 73.7 offensive grade, 70.7 passing grade, and a 71.9 rushing grade (11th out of 29 QBs). The touchdown to interception ratio is 1:1 at five touchdowns and five interceptions, but the rushing floor provided by Shough is what showed up the most on Sunday.
Although New Orleans hasn't asked Shough to utilize play action much (15.2% of dropbacks), it isn't his strength, as Shough has totaled 12/26, 126 yards, and 4.8 YPA on play fakes. To be fair, Shough has had three drops on play-action throws, which accounts for
On no play action, Shough has been far more effective with a statline of 108/158, 1,086 yards, 6.9 YPA, five touchdowns, and five interceptions.
Stats matter very little if the team continues to win and he is contributing.