What we know about Saints' QB competition after Week 1 OTAs - ESPN

METAIRIE, La. — The New Orleans Saints began OTAs last week with a rare sight: A quarterback competition.

Second-year quarterback Spencer Rattler and rookie quarterback Tyler Shough were split off in sections of the team's indoor practice facility. On Thursday, Rattler worked with the first-team offense and Shough with the second-team. Third-year quarterback Jake Haener, who is dealing with an oblique strain, watched from the side.

Both quarterbacks had their highs and lows in practice, with Shough's best throw coming on a deep pass to wide receiver Rashid Shaheed. But they won't name a starting quarterback coming out of a practice in May — the team intends for that to come later.

Saints coach Kellen Moore said every quarterback got their turn with the first-team offense in Week 1 of OTAs last week, including Haener before his oblique injury. That rotation will continue throughout the summer.

«I don't want them to get into [a state] where they're always looking at who's in, who's out,» Moore said.

Because quarterback Derek Carr retired on May 10, the Saints' starting quarterback spot is up for grabs for the second time in the last 20-plus years. The other time was when Jameis Winston and Taysom Hill competed to be Drew Brees' successor after Brees retired in 2021.

While that competition featured two quarterbacks with several years of NFL experience, this is new territory for the Saints: four young players, two of whom have a combined seven NFL starts and no professional wins. Shough, Rattler and Haener, along with undrafted rookie free agent Hunter Dekkers, who the team picked up on May 13, will spend their summer trying to obtain one of the two (or three) spots in the quarterback room.

«It's been really good. Yeah, it's