What will happen to Ian Book?

By Chris Moore (Twitter @fantasy_moore)

Heading into their week 16 matchup against the Dolphins, the Saints were down to their third-string quarterback Ian Book. Book was the next man up to start in week 16 due to Trevor Siemian and Taysom Hill being placed on the COVID list. With the Saints down two quarterbacks, it was Ian Books’ time to shine on primetime. Book finished the game 12/20, passing for 135 yards and two interceptions. The Saints went on to lose 20-3 in a crucial game they needed to win. Let’s get into Book’s performance and see what went wrong for the young rookie quarterback.

Rough Performance 

Books performance against the Dolphins was rough, to put it nicely. Book faced heavy pressure all night from the Dolphins and struggled to read the defense. Book was sacked eight times and threw a pick-six on his first NFL drive. It was a terrible game for Book, as the Saints struggled to run the ball and were playing from behind all night. The Dolphins’ defense has been playing very well as of late, but Book still struggled heavily in a game the Saints needed to win. It was rather disappointing for Saints fans, as many throughout the year thought Book could potentially be the starter one day for the Saints, and many wanted Book to play when Siemian was starting earlier in the year. Now it was only one game, and Book will adjust and get more comfortable playing in the league as he gains experience. But after his performance against the Dolphins, it doesn’t look like Book should be viewed as the Saints’ next franchise quarterback. Book looked like a backup out there in week 16, and it’s clear he needs more time if he is ever going to play in the NFL.

Potential Future

There’s a chance the Saints don’t have their franchise quarterback on the roster yet. Winston looked very promising, but he is only getting older and will be returning from an ACL tear in 2022. The Taysom Hill experience was a fun one. But he’s not the Saints’ long-term answer at the quarterback position. Ian Book looked like he doesn’t have a future in the league in his only start, but he is still very young and is still a rookie. It wasn’t a good performance. But Book will learn from the mistakes he made and hopefully get better as he gains the experience.