The New Orleans Saints may have given Kellen Moore his first crack at becoming an NFL coach, but the franchise doesn’t necessarily have the kind of quarterback situation that a first-year head coach would want to be set up with. The two most likely options are Spencer Rattler, who went 0-6 as the starter in New Orleans in 2024, and Tyler Shough, a 2nd round rookie who will turn 26 years old before the first month of his rookie year ends.
Oh yeah, Jake Haener is in the mix too.
Yes, the same Jake Haener who looks more like a model than a quarterback. The same Jake Haener who I left out completely in a headline on the Saints quarterback competition just two weeks ago. The same Jake Haener who absolutely believes that he’s got just as good of a chance to earn the title of QB1 before the 2025 NFL season begins.
“I believe this organization, if they didn’t truly believe I could be a guy that they think couldn’t win the starting job, they wouldn’t include me in it. Simple as that,” Haener said after practice on July 26, per Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk. “They wouldn’t make me feel good about myself. I totally see it as a three-man race. I think I’ve earned that right.”
Jake Haener Runs With the Ones
Haener went 5-for-7 during 11-on-11 period on Friday afternoon, and throughout the early days of camp, he’s showed a preparedness in the meeting rooms and a willingness to push the ball down the field that has impressed Kellen Moore and the Saints coaching staff. After Friday’s practice, Moore reiterated that he viewed New Orleans’ QB competition as a three-man tilt.
“We feel good about letting all these guys go for it,” Moore said, per Matthew Paras of The Advocate.
Rattler has received the most first-team reps thus far, but he hasn’t yet done nearly enough to separate himself from either Shough or Haener. Suddenly, all three of New Orleans’ preseason games are very interesting, as Rattler will need to win the job rather than having it be handed to him.
Kellen Moore Has Early Support in Saints Locker Room
Even with a somewhat unconventional and definitely unexpected approach to finding New Orleans’ starting quarterback, it sounds like Kellen Moore has a great deal of support in the Saints locker room early on.
“I think he’s got a good energy,” veteran running back Alvin Kamara told reporters. “He has a rhyme and a reason to why he does things, he knows what he wants. And I think that’s one of the biggest things in being a player and a coach, just having the confidence to say something or do something and stand on it.”
While Kamara has been in the NFL for nearly a decade, it hasn’t even been a month since Tyler Shough signed his rookie contract. He too has been impressed with Moore’s approach early on.
“He speaks the language, he’s been behind the face mask,” Shough told Shaun Goodwin of The Idaho Statesman. “He knows what’s going on.”
He just doesn’t know if Jake Haener, Spencer Rattler or Tyler Shough will be his starting quarterback yet.
Saints’ Kellen Moore Provides QB Competition Update
Training camps kicked off across the National Football League last week and fans got their first look at the New Orleans Saints' quarterback competition.
The Saints have been deliberate with their approach to the competition. Entering camp, Tyler Shough and Spencer Rattler have been annointed as the favorites, but Jake Haener is still in the mix as well and the team made that clear. Head coach Kellen Moore shared that the Saints would be cycling through the quarterbacks until a decision is made and that is exactly what they did.
Rattler, Shough, and Haener all have gotten opportunities with the first team. Rattler went first, then Shough, and then Haener. As of writing, a favorite hasn't emerged from training camp specifically, but Rattler has gotten a lot of love. But, all three are firmly in the mix for the starting job.
As training camp approached, the Saints' quarterback room has been talked about in a not-so-positive way at times because of the youth and inexperience. But, that doesn't seem to matter in New Orleans. In fact, Moore made it clear that he feels good about all three quarterbacks competing for the starting job.
"We feel good about letting all these guys go for it,” Moore said as transcribed by The Advocate's Matthew Paras.
Now, it's not shocking for a head coach to make it clear that he likes his quarterback room, especially when he played a big role in specifically drafting Shough. But, it should give fans some hope, though.
Moore has had plenty of success offensively throughout his coaching career to this point. Whoever wins the job will be in good hands.
