Spencer Rattler, once regarded as a top prospect and potential first overall pick, has been a subject of debate throughout his football career, dating back to high school.
Despite the lingering “character concerns” that followed him from his days as the nation’s top recruit, the New Orleans Saints were undeterred, selecting him in the fifth round of the 2024 NFL Draft with the 150th overall pick.
Though Rattler’s journey to the NFL was anything but straightforward—he was replaced by Caleb Williams at Oklahoma following some early struggles and then transferred to South Carolina—his talent remains undeniable. His tenure at South Carolina was marked by both highs and lows, yet he worked to dispel doubts about his character that had been amplified by a controversial clip from the Netflix series ‘QB1: Beyond The Lights.’
NFL insiders such as Ian Rapoport and Adam Schefter have pointed to this two-minute clip as a potential reason for his draft slide, a perspective hotly contested by South Carolina coach Shane Beamer, who vehemently defended Rattler.
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The Saints, however, are looking forward, not backward.
According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler via On3, the team has no reservations about Rattler’s past.
“The slide to the fifth round was unexpected,” Fowler said on SportsCenter. “There was some stuff about the character from his high school days in a documentary that wasn’t flattering. I talked to the Saints about that somebody there, they said they had zero problems with that. He had clearly matured from all that it really didn’t even come up all that much in their team interviews of Rattler.
The Saints believe they’ve found excellent value in Rattler, viewing him as a potential backup to Derek Carr in the near term and possibly more as he acclimates to the NFL. New Orleans’s decision to draft Rattner reflects their confidence in his growth and maturity since the incidents depicted in his youth.
With rookie minicamp underway, Rattler is now focused on proving his worth on the field, eager to contribute to the Saints and put his turbulent path behind him. New Orleans’s focus remains squarely on football, indicating a belief that Rattler’s past will not define his future in the NFL.
