It has been a debate all summer on who will start at quarterback for the Saints come Week 1. Will it be the veteran in Spencer Rattler or rookie second-round pick Tyler Shough? Well, New Orleans has made its decision and the team will be starting Rattler at quarterback for its Week 1 matchup vs. the Cardinals on Sunday, Sept. 7th, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Given Rattler’s struggles last season, the Saints not starting Shough is somewhat surprising and New Orleans should turn to the rookie in the early stages of the season. At Louisville last season, Shough threw for 3,185 yards, 23 touchdowns and just six interceptions.
However, with Rattler under center in the meantime, the Saints should continue to be one of the worst passing attacks in the league. In his six starts last season, Rattler threw for only 1,317 yards, four touchdowns and five interceptions. Among the 44 quarterbacks that logged at least 20% of their team’s dropbacks last season, Rattler ranked 42nd in YPA (4.8) and 43rd in completion percentage (47%). With Rattler starting, the Saints went 0-6 and averaged just 12.3 PPG, including a pathetic scoreless performance vs. the Packers in Week 16.
Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed have both been trendy picks for fantasy football drafts this summer based on their raw talent and these receivers will have strong upside once Shough inevitably takes over at quarterback, but with Rattler starting in Week 1, it’s difficult to have positive fantasy outlook for either Olave or Shaheed, regardless of this likely fast-paced matchup vs. the Cardinals. The Saints carry a very low 17.5-point implied team total for this opening week matchup on DraftKings Sportsbook and in the games Olave and Shaheed played with Rattler starting last season, the wideouts averaged just 8.2 FPTS per game (three games) and 8.2 FPTS per game (one game), respectively.
