The regular season is fast approaching and everyone wants to know the answer to an all-important question: Who will be the New Orleans Saints starting quarterback in Week 1?
Saints head coach Kellen Moore has gotten the question in a myriad of formats and from a host of different sources, including his own children.
“They’ve got advice about everything," Moore said. "Every bad decision, every throw, every play call, yep, they’ve got it all.”
But what they don't have? The name of the Saints starting quarterback, whom the Saints head coach today made very clear has not been selected yet between rookie Tyler Shough and second-year QB Spencer Rattler. It's been one of the biggest questions facing Moore in his first training camp as head coach.
Shough was drafted by the current regime at No. 40 overall this season, while Rattler was a 5th-round pick a year ago. Each QB started a preseason game and led one touchdown drive, along with two more drives for field goals. Each has thrown one interception. The passing stats are also stunningly similar.
- Shough: 24-34 (70.5%), 231 yards, TD, INT
- Rattler: 25-35 (71.4%), 252 yards, TD, INT
The evaluations in the background have been equally close. The Saints have entered regular season mode, meaning Tuesday's practice was closed to the media and outside evaluation will cease for a day. Wednesday's practice will be at the Caesars Superdome and open to the media, but Thursday's will again be closed.
“We look at every aspect of this quarterback situation, and so it’s really, really close," Moore said. "Numbers, experiences, reps, everything. It’s going all the way back to the start of training camp. Everything is very, very close between this group and so, you know, we’ll just see how it all plays out.”
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So close in fact that the team says it plans to use this week to continue that evaluation. The Saints will ultimately have to pick a player to start on Saturday against the Broncos, but it's unclear if that choice will be a statement on who will play Week 1. Moore made it clear that he's not simply presenting a facade.
“We haven’t named one," Moore said. We haven’t gone through that. Once we make that decision, they’ll know and then you guys will know. ... We're not hiding anything, guys. Don't worry.”
But the lack of a quarterback is certainly a point of concern for fans as a season approaches with some of the lowest expectations for any Saints team in the last quarter century. The Saints have missed the playoffs for four consecutive seasons and are coming off a last-place NFC South finish.
It's unlikely that naming a quarterback would change that sentiment all that much, but it would represent some conviction in the process. To Rattler and Shough's credit they've navigated the situation well. The high point for Rattler is the most recent, leading an 82-yard touchdown drive and finishing it off with a 2-point conversion that set up a tie and a 14-point second half comeback in Week 2 of the preseason. Shough threw a 54-yard touchdown to Mason Tipton in the opener.
"We’re letting these guys continue to go through this journey," Moore continued. "They’ve done some, really, really good work and so we’ll put ourselves in position for this Denver game and see where it goes from there.”