METAIRIE, La. -- The New Orleans Saints and Baltimore Ravens could either be headed for an offensive shootout or a defensive battle when they play Sunday (1 p.m. ET, CBS).
The identities of both teams are yet to be determined after just a week, but it's clear they both have the ability to put up major offensive numbers after combining for 71 points and 975 net yards of offense in their respective Week 1 games.
It was a fast start for the Ravens, who beat the Indianapolis Colts 41-23 after leading 31-13 in the first half. But in the Saints' game, New Orleans fell into a 21-0 hole before rallying to lose to the Detroit Lions, 31-30 in overtime.
So what version of the Saints' offense will show up in Baltimore? The answer depends on Saints quarterback Tyler Shough.
"There was a lot to clean up just as a whole offensive unit, especially myself. I wish I would have just kind of gone through my operation and had cleaner feet earlier on," Shough said Wednesday. "My feet were too quick and I was trying to be too perfect."
The 26-year-old quarterback had a significant amount of pressure placed on his shoulders compared to last season, when he sat behind Spencer Rattler for half the season until he was ready to start as a rookie.
By the time Shough made his first start in Week 9 in 2025, the one-win Saints were already long shots to make the playoffs. Simple signs of growth from the second-round pick were considered a win.
The Saints expect more in Year 2, both from Shough and themselves.
"This year we're not going to take moral victories," Saints edge rusher Chase Young said. "Our job is to go back to the drawing board and look through our mistakes and correct them."
Shough has said he doesn't get rattled easily, but there was an early disconnect from the offense in Detroit in Week 1. The QB ran into defensive walls, took five sacks and missed open receivers.
His teammates kept their confidence in him though. Saints wide receiver Devaughn Vele said Shough's body language never changed, showing his maturity in handling adversity.
"He was still saying, 'Hey, we're just going to take it play by play.' Those kind of guys, those are the ones that you can get behind and help you stay positive and continue to make those plays. I think that's why we're able to create that spark in that second half," said Vele.
Wide receiver Chris Olave said he wanted Shough to know how much he believed in his QB's abilities. Olave kept telling him he knew he could play like he's the league's best passer.
"Let's just drive confidence into him. We all know what he can do, but it's going to be adversity sometimes," Olave said after the game. "We're just going to need other people to pick him up. ... We all know he can do it, so he bounced back."
Shough said that belief encouraged him to play fast and free.
"I just kind of took that pressure off myself, just played football and that's part of it. I'm still pretty early when it comes into that aspect of it," Shough said. "I had a lot of fun being able to have some adversity. ... It was good to be able to build off that and the whole offense. We just were not on the same page and we were able to just get things going."
The third quarter of the loss to the Lions went as poorly as possible for Shough, who turned the ball over on two straight series to give the Lions a 21-0 lead.
Perhaps feeling like there was nothing to lose, Shough stepped up on his next play, threw a 47-yard pass to Olave and got better from there, leading scoring drives on four of the Saints' next five possessions.
New Orleans finished a two-point conversion away from beating the Lions in overtime, capping off Week 1 with 30 points, 410 passing yards and 469 total yards of offense.
"Once you get things going and get a rhythm, that big play to Chris, that's an obvious game-changing moment where you can go out there and make a big play," Shough said.
The Saints can't afford a slow start against the Ravens, who stifled the Colts' passing attack early, allowing only 166 total passing yards and 88 passing yards in the first half.
"We've just got to play better in the first quarter, simple as that. It's not a time on task thing, it's a design and execution thing for all of us," Saints coach Kellen Moore said.
New Orleans will need to figure out how to get its run game going as well and rely less on Shough, who had 56 pass attempts against the Lions. Moore said he "feels good" about running back Alvin Kamara's chances to play after missing the last month with a knee injury.
The Saints utilized a running back by committee approach against the Lions, with free agent addition Travis Etienne Jr. rushing nine times for 46 yards, slightly more than Kendre Miller (nine attempts for 30 yards).
Kamara could be another pass catcher for Shough. Olave had 10 catches for a personal best 182 receiving yards, but Vele and tight ends Noah Fant and Juwan Johnson combined for the team's three receiving touchdowns.
"He's a difference-maker at every position, to be honest. His physicality, his speed, his one-cut ability, his presence just in the huddle ... He's got the experience and then they have to respect all that stuff," Shough said of Kamara. "So having him, Trav, Juwan, Noah, there's a lot of weapons you can put in the backfield."
