With Derek Carr sidelined with an oblique injury, New Orleans Saints head coach Dennis Allen has made up his mind about who will start for the Saints this weekend against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Rookie quarterback Spencer Rattler.
Rattler, the Saints’ fifth-round selection in the 2024 NFL Draft, was designated as the team’s No. 3 quarterback behind Carr and Jake Haener for each of New Orleans’ first five games of the season. But with Carr expected to miss multiple weeks with his oblique injury, the team is turning to Rattler, and not Haener, for at least this weekend.
During preseason action, Rattler completed 20-of-38 passes for 202 yards and a touchdown, and he did not throw an interception.
That lone touchdown came on a well-thrown vertical route to Equanimeous St. Brown, working out of the slot:
Rattler also showed an ability to attack the middle of the field with timing and anticipation, as he did on this play against the Tennessee Titans, working off of play-action:
Or on this completion to Stanley Morgan Jr. against the Arizona Cardinals
In his limited preseason action, Rattler also showed an ability to influence defenders with his eyes. On this completion to A.T. Perry, again working off play-action, Rattler flashes his eyes to the middle of the field just before making this throw. That little bit of influence holds the safety in the middle of the field, creating more space for Perry’s vertical route:
Now, Rattler will get a chance to put those skills to the test for real, against the Buccaneers in his NFL debut.
