Rookie Spencer Rattler will start at quarterback when the New Orleans Saints host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday, coach Dennis Allen said Wednesday.
Rattler will start in place of Derek Carr, who is expected to miss multiple weeks after sustaining an oblique injury in Monday’s 26-13 loss to the host Kansas City Chiefs.
Rattler was selected in the fifth round of April’s draft. The contest will mark his NFL debut.
The Saints chose Rattler over Jake Haener, who was the backup that replaced Carr on Monday.
“We talked a lot as a staff about what we felt like was the best thing for us and give us the best chance to win the game,” Allen told reporters. “That was the decision that we made and we’re excited about him getting an opportunity to go in there and we’ll let him go play and see what he can do.”
Rattler, 24, passed for 10,807 yards, 77 touchdowns and 32 interceptions in five college seasons — three at Oklahoma (2019-21) and two at South Carolina (2022-23).
Haener, 25, was a fourth-round pick by the Saints in 2023. He passed for 9,120 yards, 68 touchdowns and 18 interceptions in four on-field seasons for Washington (2018) and Fresno State (2020-22).
Haener has seen action in three games, including the loss to Kansas City, and has completed 2 of 8 passes for 17 yards.
Carr, 33, has passed for 989 yards, eight touchdowns and four interceptions this season, his second in New Orleans. He was a four-time Pro Bowl selection during nine seasons with the Oakland/Las Vegas Raiders.
–Field Level Media
