Much to the chagrin of Falcons fans, the New Orleans Saints boast one of the most exciting young quarterbacks in the NFL. Tyler Shough has been off to a great start in 2026. He's the main reason the Saints have been hyped up as a team to watch this year and a possible dark horse in the NFC South.
The only QB in football with more passing yards than Shough through three weeks is another NFC South starter in Bryce Young and only Kirk Cousins and Brock Purdy have more touchdown passes. The hype train is in full force, but the Atlanta Falcons have a unique opportunity to set things back.
The Falcons will travel to New Orleans to face the Saints on Monday Night Football for their third matchup with Shough--and the first two went pretty well. Atlanta swept their arch-rivals last season, including a Week 18 win, and if the defense comes to play, ideally this streak extends to three games.
Can the Atlanta Falcons lock down Tyler Shough for the second straight season?
In two career matchups against the Dirty Birds, Jeff Ulbrich's defense has stifled Shough. He's mustered a 78 career passer rating, has thrown an interception in both matchups against the Falcons, and has thrown just one touchdown pass. Suffice it to say the team in red and black his his number despite the buzz from the rest of the league.
Without Travis Etienne, the Saints are going to be woefully inefficient on the ground, so they're going to have to air out the football if they want to win this game--which means they will live or die with how Shough performs. And considering they'll also be without starting left tackle Kelvin Banks Jr., there is ample opportunity for this pass-rush to get home.
The only quarterback who has been sacked more than the second-year man out of Louisville is Bucs starter Baker Mayfield, who is now hurt. And given the Falcons lead the NFL in pressure rate (44..2%) and are third in pass-rush win rate (61%) on the season, and that's without two of the pass-rushers who gave him a fit last season in James Pearce Jr. and Jalon Walker.
That screams nightmare matchup for Tyler Shough. Za'Darius Smith has turned back the clock, Cameron Thomas has been a surprise breakout star, and Gervon Dexter has been elite. And I haven't even mentioned the other standouts on this defensive line like Maason Smith and Brandon Dorlus.
The thing is with Shough is that he's pretty turnover-prone, as he has three interceptions on the season, so if this pass-rush gets home, it could help force him into some bad decisions. And without A.J. Terrell, they're gonna need some takeaways so Mike Hughes doesn't get torched all night long.
Tyler Shough has been one player against the rest of the NFL and a completely different player against the Atlanta Falcons, and if Jeff Ulbrich and company are able to keep him contained for the third time in as many matchups, the Falcons will be in position to resume control of the NFC South.
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