Tyler Shough’s second NFL season is starting with a much bigger role in New Orleans. Before the season opener Sunday against the Lions at Ford Field in Detroit, the New Orleans Saints quarterback was named a captain by teammates’ vote, a strong sign of how far he has come since being selected No. 40 overall in the 2025 NFL Draft.
That rise has been built on more than just what Shough did on the field during the closing stretch of the 2025 season, when he helped New Orleans go 5-4 and became a finalist for the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Award. It has also been shaped by what he did away from game days. Shough said he stayed in New Orleans throughout the offseason, worked out every single day, and made a point of becoming more vocal while continuing to earn the trust of his teammates.
A bigger presence in New Orleans
Shough said the approach was simple: give teammates every reason to believe in him.
“I wanted to do everything I could to make sure that my teammates knew I had their back and I was going to do everything I could to go out there and perform,” Shough said. “That showed with me staying here in New Orleans and working out every single day and making sure I was ready to go come OTAs, come training camp. And then also, just being more vocal and being around everybody.”
The offseason also put Shough in the public eye around New Orleans. He took part in a team ambassador trip to Paris, appeared with the Savannah Bananas and took part in the Zurich Classic celebrity shootout. Kellen Moore said that visibility mattered, but so did the work behind it.
“He’s done a great job this offseason of applying himself with football, with the work that he needs to put into this thing,” Moore said. “Naturally, being a fairly visible person in our community, I think he has done an awesome job of that.”
Why teammates voted for him
For Shough, the leadership push was tied directly to relationships. He said he wanted to learn the city, understand the team better and keep growing as the person his teammates see every day.
“I wanted to be in New Orleans, I wanted to learn more about the city and I’ve just really come to enjoy it and love it here and also, come to really know and embrace the whole team,” Shough said. “I think that’s just another piece in the puzzle of what we’re building and I know for my job and my continual growth, I’m going to keep doing everything I can in my aspect of leadership.”
That effort appears to have landed. Erik McCoy said Shough’s connection to the team and the city stood out.
“I felt like he really embraced the city and the city really embraced him,” McCoy said. “And I think as far as the locker room goes, we’re all behind him.”
Shough called the honor a milestone in his career and a reflection of how much he has connected with his teammates.
“It’s probably the biggest thing I feel like I’ve accomplished in my career, as far as just getting to know my teammates,” he said.
The Saints have not hidden the fact that Shough is now at the center of their public identity heading into the season opener. He is no longer just a young quarterback trying to settle in. He is the player teammates chose to help lead them into the 2025 season, and the one expected to carry both the offense and the tone around the locker room.
That is a meaningful step for any quarterback, especially one entering only his second NFL season. The test now is whether the leadership Shough showed this offseason can carry over once the games start for real in Detroit.
