2025 NFL Draft: Louisville QB Tyler Shough Breakdown

“A lot of people go to college for 7 years.”

Tyler Shough is one of those people. Although he didn’t go for 7 years to become a doctor. Instead, it was to become an NFL quarterback. And with the 40th pick in the draft, the New Orleans Saints made sure all that hard work and those extra college courses paid off.

Shough was surprisingly the third quarterback off the board. Surprising, that is, unless you watch him on the all-22.

If you were constructing an NFL quarterback from scratch, he’d look a lot like Shough. He’s 6’5”, can make any type of throw, and actually has some decent mobility.

That doesn’t mean there aren’t concerns, however. His injury history isn’t encouraging. He broke a bone in three straight seasons from 2021-23. Is that a fluke? A coincidence? Or a pattern indicating it’s likely to happen again? That’s an unknown that even the best scout couldn’t predict.

There are some on-the-field habits and tendencies that Shough will need to iron out as well. But overall, the Saints’ decision to draft him makes a ton of sense.

Let’s dive into all of it below.

A Talented Thrower

First and foremost, Shough can make any type of throw. He’s got a good fastball:

But he uses all of his pitches. He can throw with touch, feather it at the intermediate level, or drop it in a bucket from 50 yards away:

The ability to attack 1-on-1’s and hit those downfield vertical shots is going to play nicely in Kellen Moore’s offense.

On top of the physical ability to hit all these different throws, Shough has very good ball placement, meaning he makes the right type of throw to beat the coverage.

Just look at this example. Shough hit the skinny post at the top of the screen but made sure to put the ball on his receiver’s back shoulder to keep him away from the closing safety in the middle of the field: