New Orleans Saints HC Dennis Allen Talks Drafting Spencer Rattler, His Potential As A Future Starter

Andrew Lyon | Apr 28, 2024

Mar 2, 2024; Indianapolis, IN, USA; South Carolina quarterback Spencer Rattler (QB10) during the QB Drills at the NFL Combine / Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Although it took much longer than South Carolina football fans expected, the Gamecocks saw their first quarterback get drafted since 1990 on Saturday afternoon, as the New Orleans Saints took Spencer Rattler with the 150th overall pick. Saints head coach Dennis Allen met with the local media after the draft concluded to talk about their day three action and was asked about his feelings regarding Spencer still being on the board when their pick rolled around in the fifth round. As he put it, Rattler was one they had been tracking long before it was time to make the selection.

"It was pretty obvious as you're sitting there watching the draft go and you kind of got this one name sitting over there -- So we sat around for a little while and that name just kept staring at us, and so when it became our time to pick, it was really obvious that that was the right choice."

As far as why Rattler was the right choice for New Orleans, Dennis immediately pointed to his god-given talent and proven ability to deal with adversity as the main sticking points.

"The ability to make all the throws. I mean he can make a ton of throws. He's got enough mobility in the pocket. I think this is a guy that has been through a lot of adversity, faced a lot of criticism, and he's come out on the other side and I think that's a good quality to have as a quarterback."

With Derek Carr nearing the latter stages of his NFL career and having been mired with inconsistent stretches throughout the past few seasons, South Carolina fans believe Spencer has a legitimate shot to become the Saints' starting quarterback in the near future. Does his new head coach feel the same way?

"I definitely think he's got the ability to develop into that. He's got a lot of work to do, but I think he's got that developmental quality to him. Yeah, absolutely."

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