The New Orleans Saints made a splash in the 2025 NFL Draft when they took a somewhat controversial QB in the second round, but there's one big name you can count among the supporters of the decision: The legend Archie Manning.
Landing with the Saints at No. 40 overall out of Louisville, Tyler Shough got to know the Manning family well during a pair of trips to the Manning Passing Academy in Thibodeaux. Speaking with Mike Detillier and Bobby Hebert on WWL Radio this week, Archie made it clear how he felt about Shough and the decision to bring him to New Orleans.
"This is a tough thing with the Saints. We don’t know what’s going to happen at the quarterback position," Manning said. "If he happened to be thrown out there, he’s better prepared than most. It’s a tough transition, I don’t care how old you are or how much football you’ve played, it’s a huge step, but I think he’s very qualified and I absolutely love the pick. I thought the pick was just fantastic.”
Listen to the full interview with Saints legend Archie Manning in the player above. Can't see the embed? Click here.
The two biggest criticisms for Shough have been advanced age -- he'll be turn 26 during his rookie season -- and his injury history -- three season-ending injuries during his run at Texas Tech. When the Saints spoke to the media following the draft, two things they pointed to as positive were his pro readiness and understanding of how to handle adversity, something Manning also applauded.
"That’s the worst side of football, being hurt, and bless his heart, you just, you know, what guys go through when they get injured, when they continue to get injured just year after year is just so frustrating," Manning said. "That’s why I’m really, really proud of Tyler the way he hung in there. Sometimes you just, you get enough and you say I’ve got to find something else to do, but it’s a real testament to him that he kept fighting and of course he wound up changing schools again, which is a pretty popular thing right now. It’s just a great story."
Shough shared after the draft that he still hears from Archie through text messages on occasion. He was also informed after the draft that he was the highest QB pick of the Saints since Archie in 1971, and the first-ever QB picked in the second round by the franchise.
"[Archie has] been a great support system," Shough said, "and he’s great with all the quarterbacks and he’s super involved, which is kind of cool.”
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In the end Shough completed 7 years of college football, his first two coming at Oregon as the backup to Justin Herbert and the final one shortened to seven games due to COVID. His three injuries came in a Texas Tech offense that called for a high number of QB runs, but his breakout season came in his lone year at Louisville under QB guru Jeff Brohm. It was a pro-style offense that asked the QB to make reads and checks at the line of scrimmage and operate a play action passing game, something that any college QB adjusting to the pros needs to be able to do.
“[Running that offense] probably had a lot to do with him, you know, him having his good year, catching scouts and coaches eyes," Manning continued, and also watching him run that offense and knowing that it’s one that’s going to be beneficial to him as he goes into pro ball.”
Shough was one of nine Saints picks in the 2025 draft, a class that started with OT Kelvin Banks Jr. out of Texas. Manning, whose grandson Arch, was a teammate of Banks' the last few seasons also shared some glowing reviews of that selection.
“We know he’s an outstanding player or the Saints wouldn’t have picked him at that spot, but last year ... during the first part of the year I asked Arch about his left tackle, Kelvin Banks, and he said he’s a great player," Manning said, "but he’s the best guy on our team, so that says a lot about Kelvin Banks.”