Comparing Tyler Shough to Josh Allen is some of the highest praise you could give the New Orleans Saints rookie quarterback. The praise means more when it comes from a divisional foe.
On a recent episode The Set, Terron Armstead and NewOrleans.Football's Nick Underhill were discussing Shough, and Armstead revealed a text he received with Carolina Panthers' guard, Robert Hunt. After attempting to paraphrase, Armstead decided to read the message verbatim.
"Shough is the real deal. Left from Josh Allen being in the division and came to this (expletive) with Shough in it."
Robert Hunt's vision is a scary sight for the Saints
As if calling Shough the real deal wasn't enough, Hunt compared Shough to the reigning MVP of the league. Allen is also a player Hunt shared a division with for the first four years of his pro career. In those four seasons, Allen won the AFC East every year.
It's a streak that continued one year after Hunt left for Carolina. Sure the streak ended this season, but Saints fans would happily take a half decade run of divisional titles. That felt like the underlying tone of Hunt's text.
On the surface, Hunt was saying he went from a division with a great quarterback to another division with a great quarterback. The latter part suggests Allen's control over the AFC East also a plays a part in the equation of disappointment. Hunt went from a division dominated by a great quarterback, and now he sees Shough as a young quarterback who has the potential to have a similar level of control over the NFC South.
If Shough did lead the Saints to five consecutive division titles, it would be the longest streak in franchise history. The previous longest stretch was from the Saints' four straight seasons at the top from 2017 to 2020 to close out Drew Brees' career. Ironically, that's the only time the Saints have ever won even two titles in a row.
Hunt's vision would be a dream for Saints and a nightmare for the rest of the division. Seeing that the Falcons are the only team that beat him in his rookie year, one game with a decimated collection of weapons, the rest of the division may want to watch out for what the future holds.