BALTIMORE -- Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver tried to pay New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough a compliment last week by referring to him as a "poor man's Josh Allen."
The Saints coaches turned it into a joke, dubbing Shough "poor man" for the rest of the week.
"I loved it. I knew what he meant by it, but yeah, obviously he's an elite player, but it fires me up," Shough said after the Saints' 24-17 win over the Ravens.
While the "poor man" portion of Weaver's comments went viral, he was trying to make a point that Shough impressed him last year when New Orleans played Miami, where Weaver was the defensive coordinator. Shough threw two touchdown passes in that game.
"Has all the arm talent in the world [and] can run. I don't think he gets enough credit for how good [of] an athlete he is," Weaver said. " ... I just think the more reps he gets, the more confident he's going to get in that scheme and with the talent around him. I think they have done a good job of trying to build the talent around him. They have tremendous skill players. I think they have upgraded their offensive line from when I saw [them] a year ago. So, sky's the limit for the kid."
Shough turned the tables on the Ravens late in the fourth quarter Sunday, scoring a go-ahead touchdown on a quarterback sneak on fourth-and-goal with 1:32 left. The touchdown, which put the Saints up 24-17, was confirmed after officials said they could not find clear evidence on replay that he had not broken the plane of the goal line.
Allen's 11 fourth-quarter passing and rushing touchdowns are the most since Week 10 of last season. But Shough is not far behind, with his 10 such touchdowns trailing only Allen in that span.
As of the end of Sunday's early games, Shough led the league with 662 passing yards, was tied for fifth with three passing touchdowns and was tied for fourth with one rushing touchdown.
"You know how social media be, but it's not really motivation, man. People try to compare people all the time, but I feel like Tyler's one of one," Saints wide receiver Chris Olave said. "He's making a name for himself in his league and by the end of the year, I feel like he's going to be one of the top quarterbacks."