New Orleans Saints safety Jonas Sanker (33) tackles Denver Broncos running back Blake Watson (25) during a preseason game at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, Saturday, Aug. 23, 2025. (Staff photo by David Grunfeld, The Times-Picayune)
STAFF PHOTO BY DAVID GRUNFELD
The Saints finished their preseason with a [28-19 loss](https://www.nola.com/tncms/asset/editorial/def58d4c-f1cf-4479-ae97-eac22df00a90/) to the Denver Broncos on Saturday at Caesars Superdome. The Saints finished 0-2-1 in the preseason, but preseason records don’t mean anything. It’s more about the personnel that will make up the 53-man roster. Here are three things we learned about the Saints in their final tune-up game.
### Who’s QB1?
Kellen Moore said this week that the race to land the starting quarterback job was “really, really close.” We didn’t really see anything to change that Saturday. Ideally, Spencer Rattler or Tyler Shough would have played consistently well enough to make you say “OK, he’s the guy.” Neither did that. Shough had the better day, leading a scoring drive in the second half. Rattler seemed to have the lead going into the game, but he didn’t seal the deal. (Missing a throw to Rashid Shaheed didn’t help.) Best guess here is Rattler (30-43-295, 1 TD, 1 INT in preseason) will get the nod over Shough (36-53-333, 1 TD, 1 INT) for the season opener. But it’s too bad neither QB was able to pull away and make the decision a no-brainer.
For the first time this preseason, we got a good look at the Saints’ first-team defense. Most of the starters were held out of the first two games, but they got some work this time against Sean Payton’s offense. They forced a three-and-out on the first series and allowed just 4 rushing yards on their three series. They did give up a big 43-yard pass, though. Also on the bad side of things is an injury to yet another o-lineman. Swing tackle Landon Young had to be carted off the field, a big blow to a unit that has struggled in preseason.
### Just for kicks
If you play fantasy football, it wouldn't be a bad idea to draft kicker Blake Grupe. Two years ago, the Saints had a training camp battle between Grupe and Wil Lutz. The Saints chose Grupe, a decision that many (me included) questioned. But Grupe has proven himself. That’s been even more evident this training camp, one of the better ones we’ve seen from a kicker. Grupe made three field goals, including a 56-yarder, Saturday. He missed just one field goal throughout the entire training camp. And that miss was in practice when it just happened to start raining right when it was time for him to kick. With the way the Saints' offense looks, Grupe may be counted on often.