As expected, the Louisville football program had a solid presence in this year’s draft. Three players from Jeff Brohm’s squad heard their names called by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell. With this, Louisville has now had 143 all-time selections in the NFL Draft. Yes, none of the Louisville players made it through the first round. They were second-round, third-round, and fourth-round picks, while three of them went undrafted. But amidst the lot, their 7800-yard quarterback stood out, finding his new home in the NFL. Not just this, he came up with a heartfelt promise of “will die on that field.” With this, it took him no time to earn kudos from big shots like Jordan Schultz and others. Now, who is that? 

It’s none other than the ex-Cardinals’ 25-year-old quarterback Tyler Shough. There came a time when Shough earned praises when the Colorado Buffaloes quarterback Shedeur Sanders’ NFL future was still in doubt. On February 25, NFL Rookie Watch posted,  “Tyler Shough looks READY to put NFL team’s on notice in the throwing portion of the NFL Combine.” That’s because Shedeur skipping the Combine workouts came off as a cowardly move, while Shough showed out. Plus, his resume was enough to turn him into an attention magnet. Over his entire college career, he threw for 7,820 yards and made 59 touchdowns. This season alone, he made 23 of those tuddies and had 6 interceptions while completing 62.7% of his passes. With this, he had picked up the NFL buzz.

Yes, Shough was not a first-round pick. He went to Kellen Moore’s quarterback-hungry New Orleans Saints in the second round as the No.40 pick. Courtesy goes to Derek Carr and his nagging injury history. But what made the Saints count on Shough? The ex-Cardinals’ QB finished the 2024 season with an 87.7 PFF grade that marks the second-best among this year’s group of Senior Bowl quarterbacks. It has been only a few days since Shough landed in New Orleans, but he is already keeping the meters high. On April 28, he made a heartfelt promise on IG. The caption read, “God’s timing. If it was easy, everyone would do it. New Orleans you will get everything out of me. I will die on that field for y’all. ⚜️ WHO DAT.”

And it did not go unnoticed. FOX Sports NFL reporter Jordan Schultz dropped a congratulatory note in the comment section, “Yessir congrats bro!!! ⚜️.” Yes, the analyst had predicted that Shough would be landing with the Saints being the natural passer in the 2025 class. The accuracy of the analysis of the quarterback going not as No.9 but No.40 also came true. It was time for Shough’s mate, Louisville cornerback Quincy Riley, to pour in his support. As he wrote, “My QB ♾️.” Shough’s impact crossed the Cardinals’ boundary. As former Texas Tech Red Raiders running back, Tahj Brooks, who landed in the Cincinnati Bengals, commented, “Let’s gooo 🔥.” 

Not just the world of football. Even a video creator, Jahnte Williams, dropped some kind words for the quarterback. “My new QB I guess … congrats man welcome to the city stay healthy and prove everybody wrong.” Now, you know how Shough has been special, and Moore made the drafting process special too.  

A sneak peek into New Orleans’ surprising quarterback choice of Tyler Shough

The ex-Louisville quarterback first spoke with assistant general manager and college scouting director Jeff Ireland, who welcomed him to the team. The moment also featured Shough’s furry friend, Murphy, who proudly flaunted Saints gear. That’s when Moore took over the conversation, and one could sense the enthusiasm from the coach’s message. “We’re fired up to have you. Love your adversity, love everything that you’re about, and we’re fired up for you to come in here and compete and show who you are.”

It’s unclear what is going to happen with Carr, but they now will have a young quarterback. However, a question must be looming in the NFL fans’ hearts. Why Shough – when options like Jalen Milroe, Shedeur Sanders, and Kyle McCord were available? That’s because the ex-Louisville signal-caller’s build is familiar to the ones Moore has coached as an offensive coordinator. For example, Dak Prescott, Justin Herbert, and Jalen Hurts. Plus, the quarterback is about to enter an interesting age.

Tyler Shough will be turning 26 this September. The same age as Tua Tagovailoa, Justin Herbert, and Jalen Hurts began their sweet journey in the pro league. And what about his coping skills with injuries? Injuries have marred Shough’s football journey big time, ever since he started his career in 2018. As Todd McShay recalled, “September 25th that year, clavicle injury misses the rest of the season. Comes back and earns the starting job again at Texas Tech. Six games into that year, another broken clavicle, and that’s 2022. Misses six games then. Final year, 2023, on September 23rd breaks his left fibula; he’s out for the rest of that season.” But he has emerged as stronger and fitter. Will Shough be the one to break the quarterback curse in New Orleans?