Breaking Down Spencer Rattler's Rookie Season

With the Saints facing a lot of uncertainty at the quarterback position going forward, we've heard just about everything when it comes to how they might view the draft.

Will they take someone with the ninth pick? Is Shedeur Sanders a possibility? What should we make of the Tyler Shough chatter? Is trading back up into the first round to get a Jaxson Dart plausible? All of the questions will get answered soon enough, but lost in the conversation is what if New Orleans pushes forward with Spencer Rattler regardless of who they draft?

Yes, the Saints didn't win a game without Derek Carr. Rattler went 0-6 as a rookie. However, he had Erik McCoy for one full game (Commanders) and then for just seven snaps the following week, a total of 62 snaps. He had Rashid Shaheed for 57 snaps in just one game (Bucs), and in that same game, he had Chris Olave for just two snaps. The following week saw Rattler play in Los Angeles until they swapped to Jake Haener, so the work with Olave was limited.

Did you know the most common formation with Rattler at the helm included Alvin Kamara, Cedrick Wilson Jr., Bub Means, Mason Tipton, Juwan Johnson, Landon Young, Trevor Penning, Taliese Fuaga, Kyle Hergel, and Connor McGovern? That was nine of the 396 snaps Rattler took in 2024. Respectfully, those aren't exactly the players you were expecting to march into a season with back in training camp.

So, despite all that happened, how did Rattler actually perform? I went back through his stats in each game and broke them down. Here's what it looked like.

Spencer Rattler's Distribution

Games: Week 6 (vs. Bucs), Week 7 (vs. Broncos), Week 8 (at Chargers), Week 15 (vs. Commanders), Week 16 (at Packers), Week 17 (vs. Raiders), Week 18 (at Bucs)

Juwan Johnson - 23/33 (69.7%), 273 yards

Alvin Kamara - 15/22 (68.2%), 88 yards

Foster Moreau - 17/21 (81%), 242 yards, 2 TDs

Dante Pettis - 8/21 (38.1%), 86 yards, TD

Cedrick Wilson Jr. - 13/18 (72.2%), 108 yards

Jordan Mims - 10/16 (66.7%), 42 yards

Marquez Valdes-Scantling - 5/14 (35.7%), 97 yards

Bub Means - 8/13 (61.5%), 82 yards, TD

Mason Tipton - 8/12 (66.7%), 65 yards

Kevin Austin Jr. - 4/10 (40%), 61 yards

Rashid Shaheed - 1/7 (14.3%), 11 yards

Chris Olave - 4/6 (66.7%), 54 yards

Kendre Miller - 5/6 (83.3%), 33 yards

Clyde Edwards-Helaire - 3/5 (60%), 24 yards

Dallin Holker - 2/3 (66.7%), 11 yards

Taysom Hill - 2/3 (66.7%), 21 yards

Adam Prentice - 0/2

Jamaal Williams - 2/2 (100%), 19 yards

Looking at this a little closer, the tight end distribution was dominant (44/60, 73.3%, 547 yards, 2 TDs) and accounted for 41.5% of his total passing yardage. Unsurprisingly, the receivers had the most targets at 101, but connected at just 50.5% on 51 receptions for 564 yards and two scores. However, that accounted for 42.8% of Rattler's passing total. Finally, the running back group saw 52 targets, hauling in 35 catches (67.3%) for 206 yards. That was 15.6% of Rattler's output.

We also can't ignore the elephant in the room, which is interceptions. Rattler threw five of them and was also credited with a fumble that got returned for a touchdown. Here's what happened.

vs. Bucs - The pass was intended for Rashid Shaheed, and Zyon McCollum made an excellent play on the ball. It certainly didn't seem like Rattler got enough on the throw. Both things can be true. The second pick was Rattler trying to make something happen down 17 with about four minutes left in the game, but Tykee Smith was there for an easy pick on a pass intended for Shaheed.

vs. Broncos - Cody Barton scoop and score on a failed blitz pickup and protection breakdown that was credited as a fumble that probably should have just been a sack.

at Packers - Down 24 with less than 2:30 to go in the third quarter, Zayne Anderson played the route against Foster Moreau perfectly and it never had a chance. This came right after the third-and-17 conversion jump pass.

vs. Raiders - First interception was a pass way too high for Marquez Valdes-Scantling, picked off by Jack Jones. The second pick was read perfectly by safety Thomas Harper with almost a minute to go, down 25-10.

At the end of the day, this is all data and facts. It shows you what went on, but it does tell a story. Getting to target the top two receivers on the team just 13 times is tough. Dante Pettis and Cedrick Wilson Jr. realistically shouldn't be the top wide receivers for Spencer Rattler, Derek Carr, or any quarterback the Saints put out there on game day. A rookie quarterback made rookie mistakes, but was also put into some tough situations.

So, could the Saints turn to Rattler as a potential solution for 2025? Maybe. If they choose to do it, they have former quarterbacks in the building to help him out, in Kellen Moore, Doug Nussmeier, and Scott Tolzien. That same argument could be made for a rookie they draft, but something Moore said at the annual league meetings stands out.

Kellen Moore on Spencer Rattler pic.twitter.com/U9p1OSETpE— Nick Underhill (@nick_underhill) April 1, 2025

"You want to make sure he (Rattler) is going through the right process," Moore said at the beginning of April. "Is he making good decisions? Is he going through his progressions? Is he hanging in the pocket? You saw a lot of those things... results can be uncontrolled variables a little bit in his circumstances. So, we are excited to continue to build and develop him as he goes through his second offseason."

"That second offseason for a lot of guys is a huge jump. That first season you're just swimming... [that is true] for any player."

Rattler was swimming, and if the Saints turn to a rookie to lead the charge this season, that could likely happen again. If Carr isn't in the picture, which seemingly looks more likely by the day, perhaps acquiring a veteran for the room would help his outlook. It could also go a long way to give him the reps and not play the cat-and-mouse game that we saw between Haener and Rattler last year for the backup role. Just name a starter and roll with it until it's not the answer.

The verdict is still out on what the future holds for New Orleans when it comes to Rattler, and the thought of him leading the charge this season is intriguing. We'll see soon enough what the play is for the Saints, but it's another offseason saying it's an area they need to get right.