Earlier this season, the New Orleans Saints faced off against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 8. This was not a good performance from the Saints, but it was the regular-season debut for rookie QB Tyler Shough.
When Shough went in, it was significantly up and down, but now, going into Week 14, the rookie has an opportunity to show that was a fluke.
What Went Wrong in Tyler Shough’s First Time Around Against Tampa Bay
When QB Spencer Rattler was benched near the beginning of the second half, HC Kellen Moore brought in Shough to get an offensive spark. This did not really happen, and there were a couple of reasons.
First, Shough looked very worried in the pocket under pressure, which is Tampa Bay HC Todd Bowles’ calling card. In addition, many of his throws looked off, and the overall timing with his receivers was not where it should have been, which made sense given the lack of practice with the starters. Besides these issues, the rookie did not look bad and made some plays.
The other problem that happened with the offense was the mistakes around Shough. Blocking was an issue, and receivers were dropping the ball consistently, with even one resulting in an interception that was not Shough’s fault.
How Things Can Change in Week 14
Since his first time on the field, Shough has dramatically improved. Crumbling under pressure is less of an issue, and timing with receivers is much better. Every game that Shough has started this season has been better than when he came in against the Buccaneers, so can he continue that in Week 14? Yes.
If mistakes are kept to a minimum from both Shough and the receivers, the Saints should be able to stay in this game. Per PFSN’s Defensive Impact Metric, the Buccaneers are ranked 7th (13.3%) in turnover rate among all defenses, so New Orleans keeping turnovers to a minimum will be a challenge. Still, they need to do that.
Again, pressure is going to be something Shough has to worry about, as it was in Week 8, but as I mentioned before, this part of his game has also improved.