Rested Rams ready for rookie QB, Saints

Ready or not, Tyler Shough, the Los Angeles Rams are waiting.

Saints coach Kellen Moore broke the glass in Week 8, bringing rookie second-round pick Shough off the bench in relief of starting quarterback Spencer Rattler last week in a loss to the Buccaneers that dropped New Orleans to 1-7.

"Tyler's starting. We're not looking back on that," Saints coach Kellen Moore said Wednesday. "Obviously, the goal is to let Tyler play and get going. Spencer knows that his role is to be the backup and he's there to help Tyler in any possible way. He did an excellent job today running the scout team, preparing just like he would be as the starter any other week. The good thing we've got going is that (quarterbacks) room is a bunch of A-plus people, and they handle it awesome."

This week, Shough makes his first NFL start at Los Angeles (5-2), and solving the Rams' defense is no easy task. They're third in the NFL allowing 16.7 points per game and are tied for eighth with 10 takeaways in 2025. Only the Tennessee Titans (13) have more giveaways this season than the Saints (12), who are 29th in the NFL in scoring (16.0 points per game).

Given their record and corresponding chances to pick near the top of the 2026 draft, the Saints might not trumpet the plan but clearly need to know what they have in Shough.

"It was a good feeling (being named starter) but in the same breath, we've got a lot of work to do," Shough said. "That's my mindset. Nothing changes process-wise, but the sense of urgency does. We're just going to have fun. We've got to go out there and put points on the board and go out there and win."

At 26, Shough is seasoned for a rookie. He's one year older than Rattler and three years older than 2024 first-round picks Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels. Moore said the plan is to give Shough enough runway to develop.

"We're not doing this back-and-forth thing," Moore said. "That's the whole objective and plan of this thing, is let Tyler go and let him have a ton of success and navigate the things he has to navigate."

As Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford can attest, you're only as old as you feel. The 17-year veteran makes career regular-season start No. 230 on Sunday and pilots the NFL's third-best passing offense (256.7 yards per game) with 17 touchdown passes and two interceptions. According to Next Gen Stats, Stafford has been pressured at the fifth-lowest rate among qualified quarterbacks (28.5%) and his time to throw (2.69 seconds) is the sixth-fastest.

He was able to enjoy the bye week and attend the 18-inning World Series win by the Dodgers -- Stafford admits he exited in the 10th inning -- in what he called the most restful week off in a long time.

"Obviously, I didn't take any hits last week, so that definitely feels better," Stafford said. "But to be honest with you, our guys have been doing such a great job of keeping me clean. I mean, I felt pretty good, knock on wood, most weeks coming into the week."

While the Saints are fighting largely for future success, the Rams remain in win-now mode. Locked in a tight race atop the NFC West, Los Angeles has won every game in which it allowed 20 or fewer points. New Orleans has put up 20 or more only twice in 2025.

One of the Rams' losses still gnaws at head coach Sean McVay, who pointed the finger at himself for the Rams not holding onto a lead against the 49ers. Those teams are set for a rematch in Week 10.

Before getting there, the Rams were introspective on their week off. McVay doubled down on a self-scouting process to define strengths, weaknesses and processes for improvement the second half of the season.

"You better know yourself before you know your opponent. That's been a consistent approach that we've really leaned into the last handful of years. You don't wait until the bye," he said. "You might have a little bit more time, but we expect to be in tune with the things that we need to be aware of. What are the opponents looking at? We better know ourselves better than our opponents."

In the win over Jacksonville in London before the bye, wide receiver Puka Nacua (ankle) was out. He was limited in Wednesday's practice but progressing, according to McVay. Without him, the Rams have kept the offense rolling. Nacua left two previous games this season -- Week 1 and Week 6 -- before the final whistle.

Davante Adams, signed in free agency prior to the season, caught three TD passes from Stafford in London. He was anxious to get back on the field to build on what they started overseas.

"Oh, hell yeah," Adams said Wednesday. "I told Sean, I was like, 'I wish we could keep rolling at this point.' And then the other part is seeing that people keep playing and then they keep doing this, and you're like, 'Damn, I just had to sit around for a week.'"

The Rams are still adding to the roster and McVay said they would consider other moves after trading for cornerback Roger McCreary in a deal with the Titans.

Wide receiver Tutu Atwell (hamstring) was placed on injured reserve. The Rams are optimistic he'll be back by the end of the month.

--Field Level Media

--Field Level Media