Entering this season, it was very easy to find a NFL mock draft that had the New Orleans Saints making Arch Manning the first overall pick in 2026. The fact that this was such a common practice really says it all about how people regarded the quality of both their team as a whole, and specifically, the quality of the Saints’ quarterback room.

Having just selected a quarterback of the future in Tyler Shough, with the 40th overall selection this past April, it was thought that they’d be starting over again in 2026. The fact that Manning, a New Orleans native and grandson of club legend Archie Manning, could be available just made this mock draft narrative feel like a Hallmark Channel movie.

Shough, instantly deemed an underdog of sorts, has no use for this hypothetical feel-good film. Spencer Rattler entered the season as the starter, but gave way to Shough in late October.

And through the first five games, the returns have not been half-bad! On the season, Shough has tossed five touchdowns, against four interceptions, passing for 1,068 yards, at a 65.2% completion rate and a 6.5 yards per attempt average.

That’s yielded him a 83.6 passer rating, and invites the question- could he really be the guy in NOLA?

Yes, says Tyrann “the Honey Badger” Mathieu, a New Orleans native who played his college ball at Louisiana State and his final three NFL seasons with the Saints.

“I think so,” Mathieu responded in an exclusive with RG.org. “They traded (Rashid) Shaheed, so now they have a few more picks. I still think they need a few more draft picks.

“They need to hit on these draft picks because when I think about the great teams and even when the Saints were really, really good a couple years ago, it’s because they drafted really well.

“Those guys ended up paying dividends, paying returns to them. I think the more draft picks they get, the more they can continue to kind of rebuild that team around Tyler, Chris (Olave) and guys like that.”

Mathieu, a three-time first team All-Pro during his 12-year NFL career, believes that the Saints will build, especially so through the draft, around Shough and wide receiver Chris Olave. 

The Shaheed trade that the former safety cited saw the Seattle Seahawks send a fourth and sixth round pick to the Saints in return. Mathieu seems to believe that the Saints will continue making more deals like this, as they look to make a major rebuild in the coming years. 

And Shough might not be a bad option as someone to do this kind of rebuild around. As was discussed in abundance, during the draft, he is 26-years-old already, and thus, more mature most NFL rookies. 

Having played at Oregon and Texas Tech, before finishing up at Louisville, Shough is well-traveled and well-experienced already, having been in college for seven years. 

Plus he has both size and mobility, a combination of traits that we don’t often see together, but when we do, the player has the potential to be special.Â