Kellen Moore's 1st Comments Since Picking Tyler Shough Says It All

The New Orleans Saints are officially turning the baton over to Tyler Shough to be the team's starting quarterback moving forward.

The move makes sense. Despite Spencer Rattler showing growth over last year, the Saints are still 1-7 and have a second-round rookie on their hands that they need to see if he can be a piece for the future for this team, or if they need to draft another guy this upcoming offseason.

It's obviously not an easy decision, but arguably is the right one. On Wednesday, Saints head coach Kellen Moore spoke to the media for the first time since the decision was announced and opened up about the decision-making process, as seen in a clip shared to social media by Jeff Nowak of Audacy Sports.

"Talked to both quarterbacks, talked through the sequence here," Moore said. "We're going to start Tyler. Really excited about this opportunity for him. He's been preparing each and every week just as if he was the starter. I feel like he's ready to go. A lot of excitement and opportunities for him. Obviously, (this will be) his first experience starting and going through that full process.

"Obviously, there's an element there that you kind of have to navigate, but we're really excited about that. Spencer has done some really good things. I think if anything, Spencer has proven he can win games in this league. He can play at a high level. He's done a lot really good things. So, this will be an exciting time for Tyler, but Spencer will always be ready and continue to grow as well. These are two young quarterbacks who we feel really good about."

The Saints are making the right decision

Oct 26, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough (6) throws downfield during the fourth quarter against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Caesars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images | Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

So, what went into making the decision now? Moore talked about that too.

"Just felt like there was an opportunity and felt like Tyler was ready," Moore said. "At the end of the day, one of the most important aspects from a wider lens perspective is offensively we have to find a little more success. A little more consistency. That doesn't have fully to do with Spencer, that has to do with everyone that has to do with the offense. We're going to continue to build that and grow each and every week. Tyler's ready to go. He's prepared really, really well throughout this whole process.

Moore has had consistent praise for Rattler all season. That trend continued on Wednesday, but the most important points Moore made with his comments was making sure to say that Shough is ready multiple times and also that the team needs more from the offense.

One question that has been speculated about is whether the Saints were making the change because Shough is ready, or more of an indication about Rattler. Moore's insistence that Shough is ready should at least give fans some solace.

He's not wrong about the offense. It hasn't been great this season. The Saints are 29th in the league in points per game with 16. While it's obviously not all Rattler's fault, clearly, the team sees the offense as an issue and when you're the quarterback you bear the brunt of it -- whether fair or not.

More NFL: Saints To Listen On Much-Needed Trade Deadline Changes