The New Orleans Saints quarterback room currently consists Tyler Shough, Spencer Rattler, Jake Haener and Hunter Dekkers. With all of the youth in the room, Kellen Moore and the coaching staff become the X-Factor in the room.
The lack of a veteran presence has been previously discussed, but Moore believes the former quarterbacks on the coaching staff can make up for that. Moore being right or wrong has the ability to make or break that unit and will impact the young quarterbacks' development.
Saints have abnormally constructed their quarterback room
You can divide the Saints quarterback room into two sections. You have Shough and Rattler battling for the starting role and Haener and Dekkers battling for the likely last spot available.
Eyes are glued to the top of the room because of the quarterback battle. That inexperience at starter has tempered expectations more than it's caused concern, but the lack of a veteran quarterback anywhere on the roster is the biggest cause for pause.
You'll regularly see a young quarterback have an older quarterback as a reference point. It doesn't make coaching irrelevant, but it gives an extra resource on the field who can also serve as a mentor. That veteran gives the inexperienced quarterback an experienced party who’s going through the same motions.
Kellen Moore is leaning on coaches to be that veteran presence
Jake Haener is the longest tenured quarterback, and he doesn't check the necessary boxes to take on that role. With no quarterback on the roster to fill that role, Moore remains unfazed. While the players are all young, the coaching staff is filled with coaches who were once in their shoes.
Moore expressed, "I feel like our quarterback room has some experience there in the sense that myself, Doug Nussmeier, Scott Tolzien, we've all been around this for a while from a player's and a coach's perspective." Those three check the positional coach, coordinator and head coach boxes. That means the Saints have former NFL quarterbacks leading the charge on every level related to their quarterbacks.
Moore and Tolzein both finished their playing career in 2017. Nussmeier last played 20 years prior to that for the Saints in 1997. All three of those coaches spent multiple years in the league. The majority of that time wasn't spent as a starter, but they were still able to get a strong grasp of the game.
Getting a veteran quarterback is typical and still feels slightly ideal, but there is a lot of experience in the coaching staff. Shough or Rattler won't have that experience of having a vet, but the value of that experience could still be felt through the staff. There's more to having a veteran than getting guidance on the field, but from a pure X's and O's standpoint, the Saints staff should have that covered.