Report: Shough Expected to Start With Broken Hand

New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough has two broken bones in his non-throwing left hand, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported Oct. 18, citing confidential sources. The injury occurred in the Oct. 5 Monday Night Football game against the Atlanta Falcons when his hand struck a Falcons player's helmet. The Saints have not publicly confirmed the diagnosis and have not placed him on the league-mandated weekly injury report. Shough has kept practicing and playing. He tapes his ring and pinky fingers together, wears a padded protective glove on the left hand, and hands the ball off with his right hand. In Week 5 against Minnesota he completed 16 of 25 passes for 96 yards with two interceptions in a 23-13 loss. He is expected to start Sunday against the New York Giants, which would be his third straight game with the injury. The bones are expected to need weeks, and possibly a couple of months, to heal; the team's Week 7 bye could give extra recovery time. No factual disputes appear in the record; the team has simply not confirmed Schefter's report.