New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough (6) is pressured by Los Angeles Chargers defensive tackle Jamaree Caldwell (99) during the second half of a preseason NFL football game Sunday, Aug. 10, 2025, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Jayne Kamin- Oncea)
Jayne Kamin- Oncea
Here’s all you need to know about the importance of NFL preseason football games.
In 2000 and 2006, the Saints won only one of their four preseason games and then went on to record 10-6 records in the regular season and win their respective divisions.
Conversely, in the Saints’ inaugural 1967 season, they went 5-1 in the preseason and finished the year 3-11 and in last place in the NFL Capitol Division.
Keep that in mind as you dissect the Saints’ 27-13 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday.
They call these things “exhibitions” for a reason. They don’t count. And rarely do they serve as an accurate divining rod for the real thing to come.
The Saints, after all, held out 12 projected starters, and the Chargers rested even more of their regulars. Moore and defensive coordinator Brandon Staley substituted liberally throughout the game, and the shuffling lineups contributed to the sloppy play. Throw in a new coaching staff and new schemes on both sides of the ball, and you had a recipe for a sloppy debut performance.
And sloppy it was. The teams combined for 11 penalties, five fumbles and two interceptions. For every clean play, there were seemingly two folly-filled fire drills. The play was so uneven that it was difficult to evaluate either side of the ball with any degree of certainty.
If, like most Saints fans, you were hoping to see Spencer Rattler and Tyler Shough light up the Chargers and SoFi Stadium with aerial fireworks, you left disappointed. The duo combined to complete 22 of 33 passes for 218 yards.
Neither seized the day, so to speak.
Other than Rattler’s 21-yard strike to Cedric Wilson in the first quarter and Shough’s 54-yard touchdown pass to Mason Tipton in the third quarter, there wasn’t much to write home about. It was mostly a lot of fits and starts and checkdowns. The duo combined to scratch out 14 first downs and 10 points in 11 mostly futile possessions.
The Saints didn’t break the end zone until midway through the third quarter. By that time, the Chargers had opened a 17-3 lead that turned out to be more than enough cushion against the mistake-filled Saints.
“A lot of learning lessons for us today,” Moore said afterward. “For all three (quarterbacks), there were some good moments and some moments that you would like to have back.”
Rattler completed 7 of 11 passes for 53 yards in five scoreless series. He also ran three times for 22 yards. His lone miscue was hardly his fault, a lost fumble on a blindside sack by Caleb Murphy.
To be fair, he didn’t get much help from his protection. Injuries to center Will Clapp and left guard Trevor Penning didn’t help matters along the depth-shy offensive line, and it showed early and often. Rattler was sacked twice, including the one that resulted in a lost fumble, and was pressured numerous times. For the most part, it looked a lot like what we saw a year ago as Rattler was forced to scramble and dodge under duress.
Still, Rattler will look back at the game tape and see room for improvement. He threw behind a couple of receivers and held the ball for too long on others. The decisiveness we saw throughout training camp was not as evident against live opposition.
“There were some good moments, but overall, just too much up and down,” Rattler said. “Gotta be more consistent.”
Shough, meanwhile, didn’t fare much better. He completed 15 of 22 passes for 165 yards and a touchdown and showed some good situational awareness in leading the offense to a field goal in 2-minute drill before halftime. However, his lone interception was a doozy that resulted in a 43-yard touchdown return by Eric Rogers.
It was the kind of play that could shake the confidence of any quarterback, much less a rookie seeing his first NFL action. But Shough responded with his best pass of the day on the ensuing series, a beautiful bomb that hit Mason in stride on his way to the end zone.
“The way these guys respond is really critical for us,” Moore said. “I thought he did a great job. He’ll learn from that one, and he’ll grow. For him to respond after such an emotional play was huge.”
If you were looking for a silver lining, this play was it. A ray of hope in an otherwise dreary overall performance.
All in all, as with most preseason games, this one was largely forgettable. There was some good, some bad – and a whole lot of ugly.