New Orleans Saints select Spencer Rattler in fifth round of 2024 NFL Draft

The New Orleans Saints have selected South Carolina quarterback Spencer Rattler with the No. 150 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. He spent the past two seasons with the Gamecocks after beginning his college career at Oklahoma in 2019.

Rattler redshirted as a true freshman before taking over as the Sooners starter and leading them to a Big 12 Championship in 2020. He returned as the starter the following season but would struggle to begin the year. That came to a head when he eventually was benched in favor of true freshman Caleb Williams in the Red River Rivalry against Texas and lost the job for the rest of the season.

That led Rattler to transfer to Columbia, where he reunited with former OU assistant turned South Carolina coach Shane Beamer. The QB went on to spend the next two seasons as the Gamecocks’ starter, leading them to an 8-5 finish in 2022, their best record in five years.

Rattler finished his career in Columbia with 6,212 yards passing, 37 touchdowns and 20 interceptions.

As a recruit, Rattler was a five-star prospect and one of the most sought after players in the country coming out of Pinnacle High School in Phoenix. He ranked as the No. 1 quarterback in the 2019 cycle according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

Rattler looked the part in his first college season to throw for 3,031 yards, 28 touchdowns and seven interceptions while leading Oklahoma to a Cotton Bowl victory. He even entered his sophomore year with Heisman Trophy hype as he appeared well on his way to becoming a high draft pick.

Unfortunately, Rattler never seemed to take the leap forward that many expected. He failed to throw for 20 touchdowns in any of the three seasons that followed as his interceptions increased as well. That said, he still had a solid college career and makes for an interesting prospect entering his rookie season.

What NFL Draft analysts are saying about Spencer Rattler

NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein provided some analysis on Rattler in his recent scout of the quarterback’s draft profile. He asserted that Rattler might be better than his numbers at South Carolina the past two seasons suggest, and still shows flashes of the player he was his freshman season. That includes throwing for 438 yards and six touchdowns in a 2022 win against Tennessee.

However, he doesn’t do so on a consistent enough basis and lacks some of the physical traits that top prospects have. Ultimately, Zierlein puts his NFL ceiling as a backup quarterback.

“Four-year starter who took more starting snaps at South Carolina than he did at Oklahoma,” he wrote. “Rattler will still flash glimpses of what he showed in his 2020 season as a Sooner but fails to consistently sustain the type of play that NFL teams look for. He lacks desired height for a pocket passer and doesn’t have enough arm strength to beat greedy NFL cover men. He was better than some of his 2023 numbers might indicate, as poor pass-blocking and drop-prone receivers often put him in bad spots.

“He can scramble and extend plays, but he’s not a dynamic runner and needs optimal protection and separation in order to work in rhythm. He needs an offense that can shrink the field so he can operate quickly and find his rhythm. He has the know-how but might not have the tape or traits to inspire confidence in projecting anything more than a QB2/3.”