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ESPN's Seth Wickersham shared a look at his upcoming book "American Kings: A Biography of the Quarterback" chronicling the development of the most important position in professional sports, touching on the careers from dozens of passers -- from Hall of Famers to active starters in the NFL. He covers a lot of ground, but this excerpt stands out as a cautionary tale for the New Orleans Saints.
First-year Saints coach Kellen Moore has indicated he'll run with a young group of quarterbacks in 2025, with rookie draft pick Tyler Shough or second-year pro Spencer Rattler likeliest to win the starting job. It's the same approach the Chicago Bears took with Caleb Williams last year, which seemed to validate the rookie's concerns about going to Chicago in the first place:
That's concerning to say the least. The Bears only rostered Williams and second-year backup Tyson Bagent, a former undrafted free agent, which wouldn't be too dissimilar a setup to the Saints cutting everyone loose but Shough and Rattler (who, we should remember, was only a fifth-round pick last year). Having a veteran in the room who can show the young guys how to process game tape can be key. Former Saints backup Chase Daniel spoke about his own experience in the film room with Drew Brees showing him what to do back in the day.
"Sunday you play the game, Monday you come in. You watch the game, you get better from your past game, alright? Tuesday, off day, you are coming in and you're watching four games of your next opponent. Every single time you come in on Tuesday. You're spending 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. watching those games," Daniel said, going into greater detail on how the team's practice schedule for Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday should emphasize what game situations passers must study each day of the week. It's a real grind and process, and it often needs to be taught. When it isn't, situations like what just happened in Chicago develop.
If the Saints are determined to start an inexperienced pro like Shough, Rattler, or even Jake Haener at quarterback, you'd think they would have a stronger support plan in place. Having so many former quarterbacks on the coaching staff should make a difference; beyond Moore himself, OC Doug Nussmeier and QB coach Scott Tolzien have all spent time in the league. But the decision to go without a veteran backup could be dicey. It's one thing to have a mentor standing at the front of the room, cycling through plays over the projector. It's something else for that guy to be wearing the same cleats as you at practice and always being available to talk shop in the locker room.
Maybe it makes a difference. Maybe it doesn't. Either way, the Saints clearly can't take as hands-off an approach with Shough (or Rattler, or Haener) as the Bears tried to do with Williams last year. Let's hope a different strategy yields different results.
This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Kellen Moore must help Saints QB's where Bears failed Caleb Williams
Continue reading...
First-year Saints coach Kellen Moore has indicated he'll run with a young group of quarterbacks in 2025, with rookie draft pick Tyler Shough or second-year pro Spencer Rattler likeliest to win the starting job. It's the same approach the Chicago Bears took with Caleb Williams last year, which seemed to validate the rookie's concerns about going to Chicago in the first place:
That's concerning to say the least. The Bears only rostered Williams and second-year backup Tyson Bagent, a former undrafted free agent, which wouldn't be too dissimilar a setup to the Saints cutting everyone loose but Shough and Rattler (who, we should remember, was only a fifth-round pick last year). Having a veteran in the room who can show the young guys how to process game tape can be key. Former Saints backup Chase Daniel spoke about his own experience in the film room with Drew Brees showing him what to do back in the day.
"Sunday you play the game, Monday you come in. You watch the game, you get better from your past game, alright? Tuesday, off day, you are coming in and you're watching four games of your next opponent. Every single time you come in on Tuesday. You're spending 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. watching those games," Daniel said, going into greater detail on how the team's practice schedule for Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday should emphasize what game situations passers must study each day of the week. It's a real grind and process, and it often needs to be taught. When it isn't, situations like what just happened in Chicago develop.
If the Saints are determined to start an inexperienced pro like Shough, Rattler, or even Jake Haener at quarterback, you'd think they would have a stronger support plan in place. Having so many former quarterbacks on the coaching staff should make a difference; beyond Moore himself, OC Doug Nussmeier and QB coach Scott Tolzien have all spent time in the league. But the decision to go without a veteran backup could be dicey. It's one thing to have a mentor standing at the front of the room, cycling through plays over the projector. It's something else for that guy to be wearing the same cleats as you at practice and always being available to talk shop in the locker room.
Maybe it makes a difference. Maybe it doesn't. Either way, the Saints clearly can't take as hands-off an approach with Shough (or Rattler, or Haener) as the Bears tried to do with Williams last year. Let's hope a different strategy yields different results.
This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Kellen Moore must help Saints QB's where Bears failed Caleb Williams
Continue reading...
