NFL analyst names Spencer Rattler a “winner” of final preseason week

The preseason is a time for underrated and unsung players to shine and make a name for themselves. It’s also a time for the latest crop of rookies to come in, get their feet wet in the league, and see their first action at the professional level. Sometimes those two ideas coincide, as they have with New Orleans Saints’ quarterback Spencer Rattler .

Rattler was taken in the fifth round of the 2024 NFL Draft , and he’s shown this preseason that there should not have been such a big gap between him and the quarterbacks taken on day one. It was an historic wait after the first round, but Rattler has played incredibly well and shown he belongs in the league, at the very least. His performance in the team’s final preseason game was good enough, in fact, to garner the title of “winner” from one NFL analyst.

In his recap of the final preseason week’s winners and losers , USA Today analyst Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz highlighted the Saints rookie quarterback. Rattler was 7-of-13 for 113 yards and notched a passer rating of 106.2 in the team’s final game, a 30-27 loss to the Tennessee Titans . Rattler capped off his preseason with a highlight-reel touchdown pass to wide receiver Equanimeous St. Brown.

His counterpart in the Saints’ battle for the backup quarterback spot, Jake Haener, finished the night with a less impressive performance, going 8/17 for just 87 yards with no touchdowns and one sack.

Saints head coach Dennis Allen has been effusive in his praise for both quarterbacks during training camp, and it’s still unclear which player won the battle to be the backup quarterback when the season starts. If nothing else, Rattler showed he deserves a spot somewhere, even if it’s not in New Orleans, and that the Saints may not be able to stash the young quarterback away on the practice squad without someone snatching him up off waivers.