There wasn’t anything for Saints head coach Kellen Moore to like about the final score of Sunday’s game in Los Angeles, but he was able to find a few silver linings in how quarterback Tyler Shough fared in his first NFL start.
Shough was elevated to the starting lineup after replacing Spencer Rattler in a Week 8 loss to the Buccaneers and he went 15-of-24 for 176 yards, a touchdown and an interception in the 34-10 loss to the Rams. The pick came once the game was out of hand and Moore said he thought the massive imbalance in time of possession — the Rams had the ball for nearly 44 minutes — cost the second-round pick chances to show what he can do.
“Certainly there were some positives in there,” Moore said, via Dan Greenspan of the Associated Press. “Thought he handled himself well, and so we didn’t get enough opportunities to compete.”
Shough’s play had something to do with the lack of opportunities as the Saints went three and out on four of their first five possessions, but a 10-minute Rams touchdown drive to open the second half falls on the defense. They’ll need to shore that up to help position Shough for better results in his remaining starts this season.
