For Tyler Shough, the starting quarterback door wasn't opened like it was supposed to be. Originally intended to sit behind Derek Carr, he instead sat behind Spencer Rattler for eight games before being thrown into the deep end.
Fortunately, Shough took to the game pretty quickly. Breaking multiple franchise records, some that were even decades old, he was able to use the short time he had to silence his doubters. He was even runner-up for the Offensive Rookie of the Year award, losing out to Tetairoa McMillian of the Carolina Panthers.
However, one can never quite rest in the NFL, and no one knows that more than Shough himself. Nearly as soon as the season ended, he got right into dissecting his film and sharpening his weaknesses. In all honesty, if he can keep his body and mind sharp, there's no telling what he could do in his second year.
Saints QB Tyler Shough is putting in the work to avoid a sophomore slump
The latter-half of last season was one to remember for Tyler Shough. An insane debut in every sense of the word, the potential franchise quarterback in New Orleans is doing everything he can to avoid the stereotypical year-two fall-off.
In a recent interview with NewOrleans.Football's Nick Underhill, Shough gave an inside look at what his weekly preparation looks like. If he keeps that routine up, a sophomore slump is unlikely. "Tyler tries to find the reasons why things go backward and then makes a list of what to work on that week. There’s the team preparation, but there are also multiple practices where he can work on those things and then evaluate himself after each day." Underhill wrote. "The self-evaluation never really stops."
Shough's willingness to hold himself accountable is a mindset you don't typically see in a second-year quarterback. The fact that he has this mentality already is exactly why the Who Dat Nation should be excited heading into this upcoming season. It's also something that's already shown up; just look at the difference between his play in week nine and week 10 of last year.
Shough being this tenacious this early on should scare the rest of the division, because he's only just getting started and is only getting better. For years now, New Orleans has been waiting for its next franchise QB. In Tyler Shough, it might've finally found one.
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