💻 Dennis Allen
What did the @Saints head coach like about their #NFLDraft and could @SpencerRattler find himself in a QB competition?#NFL #Saints pic.twitter.com/VqIXzni3oJ
— Rich Eisen Show (@RichEisenShow) May 30, 2024
A lot of fans are excited about the New Orleans Saints picking former South Carolina and Oklahoma quarterback Spencer Rattler in the fifth round of this year’s NFL draft, but what’s the vision for him? Is Rattler really going to push Derek Carr for the starting job, as some fans and even a few media analysts have stumped for?
That’s a question Saints head coach Dennis Allen addressed during an appearance on the Rich Eisen Show. Rattler is here to compete just like the other 90 players in the building, but what roster spot he’s competing for is up to him. He’ll have to earn his opportunities just like everyone else.
“I think the plan is, is that he comes in and really, basically competes. And we’ll let the cards kind of play out as they do. I think we were excited about the fact that we got into the fifth round and he was still there. From where we had him graded on our board, we felt like this player was probably more of a second- or third-round talent.”
Allen suggested that the abundance of quarterbacks drafted early on may have pushed Rattler down the board; Caleb Williams (Chicago Bears), Jayden Daniels (Washington Commanders), Drake Maye (New England Patriots), Michael Penix Jr. (Atlanta Falcons), J.J. McCarthy (Minnesota Vikings), and Bo Nix (Denver Broncos) were all taken in the first dozen picks. At that point, Rattler went into freefall.
He continued: “So the fact he fell all the way to us to the fifth round, we were really excited about that. He’s got tremendous talent. Now it’s about getting him in here, teaching him the things we want him to know and be able to execute the things we want him to execute.”
So it doesn’t sound like Rattler is going to be taking snaps away from Carr on the first-team offense just yet. He has to unseat Jake Haener for the backup job first. And while it’s very early in the offseason, Haener has been outplaying Rattler at practice. The rookie was intercepted twice by the same defender at OTAs last week with media in attendance. He’ll need some time to figure things out.
But as for the future? Allen’s comments suggest the Saints do consider Rattler as a viable starter down the line, if he meets his developmental milestones and harnesses the talent that made them draft him. He’ll need to grow and learn from his mistakes at practice to earn those opportunities like anyone else. Once he shows he’s ready, he’ll get his shot.
