Zach Wilson on decision to sign with Saints, history with Tyler Shough
Zach Wilson reflected on what brought him to sign with the New Orleans Saints, and a surprising history with Tyler Shough as high school recruits.
Over the course of the last few weeks, NFL teams have managed to clear out many of the priority free agents within the early portions of free agency opening. More recently, the focus has shifted to backups and depth options, giving teams reliable players to turn to in the event of injury. For the New Orleans Saints , this has involved bringing in former No.
2 overall pick Zach Wilson to be another backup to Tyler Shough , an intriguing pickup given Spencer Rattler being on the roster. For Wilson, this is his fourth team since entering the NFL, including the New York Jets, Denver Broncos, and Miami Dolphins. He showed immense flashes of potential coming out of college, but the NFL has been a different transition for him, and now, he will take the opportunity to learn from Kellen Moore instead.
Wilson discussed his future in the league and what drew him to sign with New Orleans during his introductory press conference : "That's really what it is for me, like wherever I end up, whatever reps I get, I can't control a lot of the things that come with it at this point, so it doesn't matter, I need to go out there and just enjoy playing the game, put my best on tape, and let the rest kind of take care of itself, and if that opportunity ever comes, being ready for it. But I wouldn't say it's something I necessarily try and have an entire road map planned out for, it's just, y'know what, just taking advantage of every opportunity I have right now, not worrying about what the future holds, and just being grateful for every second I have in the league. " Wilson also mentioned further on that he was in the same Elite 11 graduate class as Tyler Shough, which is quite wild to put into perspective, given Wilson was drafted in 2021, and Shough was taken four years later in 2025.
Shough is entering his second year in the NFL and Wilson is joining his fourth team. The two have had very different experiences both in college and the NFL, and now they end up on the same team, being mentored by Moore and building a roster that looks to compete in 2026 for a potential playoff spot. This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Zach Wilson on free agency, joining Saints, history with Tyler Shough