**INGLEWOOD, Calif. —** Fresh off his first NFL preseason game, [Tyler Shough](https://www.nola.com/tncms/asset/editorial/0fec2c49-0d8b-4e8d-943d-553a8d94fe7b/) wore a wrap around his right knee in the locker room after Sunday’s 27-13 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers.
But the New Orleans Saints quarterback didn't seem concerned.
“I just landed on it,” Shough said. “It’s just a bruise.”
Shough was sacked twice during the afternoon and his knee banged against the turf of SoFI Stadium on the second. Shough, however, continued to play after that until he was pulled with just under five minutes left, so that the coaching staff could play third-string quarterback Jake Haener.
Shough was not on the list of [injured players](https://www.nola.com/tncms/asset/editorial/81ee1c19-d30e-45ba-ade5-402cef095bba/) that coach Kellen Moore rattled off after the game.
Any hit that Shough takes is a natural candidate to be overanalyzed in part because of the quarterback’s injury history. At Texas Tech, he suffered two broken collarbones and then broke his leg in 2023 — limiting him to only 15 games across three seasons. Shough was ultimately healthy last year, appearing in 12 games for Louisville.
Shough has downplayed injury concerns, pointing out that broken bones aren’t as severe as ligament tears or other damage. The Saints’ brass, too, didn’t indicate they were concerned when the team picked him 40th overall this past spring.
In his preseason debut, Shough went 15 of 22 for 165 yards, a touchdown and an interception.
He is competing against Spencer Rattler and Jake Haener for the Saints’ starting job.