Tyler Shough Facing Backlash After Saints Crushing Week 12 Rivalry Loss

The Saints need to figure out the future of their quarterback position...

Nov 23, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough (6) looks to throw downfield against the Atlanta Falcons during the second half at Caesars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images | Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

The New Orleans Saints opted to bench Spencer Rattler halfway through the season in favor of rookie signal caller Tyler Shough. For the most part, Shough has been solid, but his most recent outing wasn't anything to call home about.

Bleacher Report's Brent Sobleski wasn't happy with Shough's Week 12 performance and graded it as a "D" as the Saints lost to the Atlanta Falcons.

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"Plenty went wrong for the New Orleans Saints during Sunday's meeting with the Falcons. Particularly, the offense didn't convert in the red zone, which only compounded the squad's kicking issues, with Blake Grupe missing two field goals," Sobleski wrote. "Despite those obvious issues, rookie quarterback Tyler Shough remains the focal point after failing to build upon his impressive performance against the Carolina Panthers prior to the Saints' bye. Shough didn't play poorly, and the Saints' coaching staff mismanaged the game by trying to make Taysom Hill a big part of the game plan around the end zone.

Tyler Shough under fire for Week 12 performance

Nov 23, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough (6) looks to throw downfield against the Atlanta Falcons during the second half at Caesars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images | Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

"At the same time, Shough has a small window to prove himself as the Saints' long-term answer at quarterback. Currently, New Orleans owns a top-three pick in the 2026 draft. By stacking consecutive strong outings upon one another, the Saints won't have to consider a quarterback near the top of next year's class. Through three games, Shough has shown some promise, but it's far from enough to anoint him as anything."

Shough didn't look impressive in Week 12, though his stat line didn't look that bad. Still, he was forced to throw the ball nearly 40 times because of the Saints lack of a running game and the fact they were losing for the entire contest.

Shough has a chance to be the future of the franchise, but he didn't look the part in Week 12. The Saints are going to need him to get going over the last few games of the season if they want to move forward with him next season. If Shough struggles down the stretch, the Saints may be forced to use their top draft pick on a quarterback.

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