It’s still early in the offseason, but the potential connection between Tyler Shough and Rashid Shaheed is already shaping up to be a major threat for the New Orleans Saints offense in 2025. Shaheed’s explosiveness combined with Shough’s strong arm and aggressiveness in pushing the ball downfield could form a dangerous duo.
We got a glimpse of that dynamic last year. While Derek Carr had his shortcomings, he consistently found Shaheed on deep throws. The offense leaned too heavily on big plays and lacked balance, which needs to be addressed—but keeping Shaheed as a deep threat should remain a priority.
Tyler Shough arm strength stole the show at Thursday’s OTAs
WVUE FOX 8’s Sean Fazende noted that “Shough looks very comfortable with vertical routes and out-breaking patterns” during Thursday’s OTA session. These types of throws are prime opportunities for quarterbacks to showcase arm strength, and a clear comfort with them often points to strong arm talent.
Thursday marked the second practice open to the media, and once again, Shough stood out. While Spencer Rattler was reportedly more consistent on the first day, Shough delivered the “highlight throw of the day”—a deep pass to Rashid Shaheed that would have gone for a touchdown in a live game.
In the following media-accessible practice, Shough connected on two more deep touchdown throws, this time to Bub Means and Donovan Peoples-Jones. The ball to Means, in particular, was a thing of beauty. Deep throws like these are always eye-catching, and while Shough will need to show more to win the starting job or have a strong rookie campaign, these moments are certainly making an impression.
Rashid Shaheed’s efficiency down the field
Though the last two deep throws didn’t go to Rashid Shaheed, he’s expected to be the Saints’ primary deep threat in 2025. Over his career, Shaheed has scored 13 touchdowns—10 as a receiver—and nearly all of those have come on big plays. In fact, nine of his 10 receiving touchdowns were from beyond 30 yards, and five of them were over 50 yards.
When his most recent season was cut short, Shaheed led the league in receptions that traveled 50+ air yards since 2023. Tyler Shough doesn’t seem interested in slowing down that pace. While the two have only hooked up once during OTAs—an off-limits session for fans—it’s a connection fans are likely to see often when the regular season kicks off.
Leave a Reply