Tyler Shough's first call after learning the news he'd be taking the reins as the Saints starter went to his wife, Jordan.
A former college soccer player and fierce competitor in her own right, her response summed up how the Saints rookie is approaching the landmark moment in his NFL career.
"She’s like, 'good, you know, I mean, go out there and win,'" Shough said on Wednesday. "She’s not really satisfied with it and neither am I, there’s nothing to be excited about. It’s just another step and we’ve got to go out there and win."
It's the appropriate chord to strike for a first-year player balancing his moment with the fact that the team he's tasked with leading just fell to 1-7 with two of its worst offensive performances in back-to-back weeks. Shough, the No. 40 overall pick out of Louisville in this year's draft, took over midway through the third quarter and was unable to generate any points, though he did lead a pair of drives deep into Bucs territory during the 23-3 loss.
Head coach Kellen Moore clearly saw enough in that effort to make the change from Spencer Rattler, who had started the first eight games and drew positive reviews from coaches despite the record. Still, Moore saw his offense needing a spark in turning to the rookie QB, and the numbers would seem to agree, with the Saints scuffling to 16 points per game over the first two months of the season and failing to crack 20 points in six of eight games.
"Tyler, I felt like, was ready," Moore said in announcing the decision. "I felt like at the end of the day one of the more important aspects from a wider lens perspective was offensively we’ve got to find a little more success, a little more consistency."
Moore added that he had no interest in a "back and forth" situation at quarterback. Much like when he named Rattler the starter ahead of Week 1, he made clear that the goal would be to ride out the rest of the season with the same player taking snaps. There will be struggles and learning opportunities, as is the case with all young QBs, but the leash will be long for Shough he takes steps forward at the NFL level.
"Tyler is in there, he’s ready to go," Moore said. "That’s the whole objective and plan of this thing is let Tyler go and let him have a ton of success and navigate the things he has to navigate.”
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Shough and Rattler were in a tight competition throughout training camp, and it wasn't until after the final preseason game that Moore announced Rattler would get the start. The Saints played several close games with the second-year QB at the helm with chances to take the lead in the 4th quarter against the 49ers, Cardinals, Bills and Patriots, but falling short each time.
Coaches had been praising Shough's development in the background, where he was primarily running the scout team and hadn't seen a first-team rep in practice since training camp. He's also been doing VR work at the team facility to stay as sharp as possible. There were multiple near misses against the Bucs that could potentially be attributed to a lack of chemistry with his top receivers, most notably an overthrown ball on a double-move for what could've been a touchdown to Rashid Shaheed in the 4th quarter.
"It sucks because it was right there," Shough said. "I threw it kind of like more of a regular go route, but with the double move he slows down a little bit and just give him a little bit more air, it’s kind of a feel thing, which we’ve been repping and we’ll hit those for sure."
He'll now get a week of practices to fine-tune before heading out to L.A. for a daunting matchup with a Rams defense that ranks second in the NFL with 26 sacks despite not playing last week. It's a defense that he should have some familiarity with, having practiced against that group during training camp. Moore also knows the group well, having faced them twice with the Eagles a year ago and coming out on the winning end both times.
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"Obviously if you were following that trend line, this probably wouldn’t be the week," Moore said. "These guys are playing really good football, you know, but I think Tyler did an awesome job through this whole preparation and I think this is an awesome opportunity for our team as a whole."
What shouldn't be a question is Shough's maturity, which the team viewed as a strength when they made the pick earlier this year. Shough entered the league at 25 years old and after 7 years of college football, something the team viewed as a strength rather than a weakness. The term adversity came up a lot, with multiple transfers and season-ending injuries defining much of Shough's college career.
That means taking over a new offense should be familiar, and his voice will resonate in the locker room. He's made sure to stay in teammates' ears throughout the process so that if and when the opportunity arose it'd be a smooth transition. He's been taking part in offensive line dinners each week, though he's yet to pick up the tab. Shough said he's confident that he'll be able to work his way into the leadership role that comes with the quarterback position, but he won't force things -- that's true in the locker room, at practice and on the field.
“It happens naturally. You can’t come in there and be corny or fake, but I haven’t changed anything," he said. "I’ve been still sending out installs, the scripts, all that stuff since the beginning of the season and ... I was trying to plan ahead as much as I could to whenever I do get an opportunity or if that may come, it doesn’t need to be like a now I’m gonna change, so I think you just be yourself and guys will gravitate to it and ultimately at the end of the day you’ve got to go out there and win, so we’ll get to it.”
The Rams (5-2) host the Saints (1-7) at 3:05 p.m. Sunday inside SoFi Stadium. Catch all the action on WWL and Audacy.