Tyler Shough plays through two broken bones in his non-throwing hand

New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough has been playing with two broken bones in his left hand, ESPN reported Sunday morning. He is expected to start Sunday against the New York Giants with the same glove and heavy wrap he wore last week.

The confirmed part is narrower. Shough first hurt the hand in the Oct. 5 loss to Atlanta. The Saints have listed him with a left hand injury on this week's report, and he was a full participant in practice. Asked last Monday whether the hand was broken, coach Kellen Moore said only that it "got banged two weeks ago" and that Shough is "wearing some protective layers there."

ESPN's sources say the ring and pinky fingers are taped together and that one estimate puts healing at "a couple of months." Shough has not missed time and does not plan to. Last week against Minnesota he handed off with his right hand instead of his left, and he is expected to keep doing that while the breaks heal. The team has not publicly confirmed the fracture.

Last week was his worst game as a pro. Shough threw for a career-low 96 yards with two interceptions in the 23-13 loss to the Vikings, which dropped New Orleans to 1-4. For the season he has completed 66.8% of his passes for 1,299 yards on 205 attempts, the second-most attempts in the league, and he has been sacked 13 times.

The calendar helps a little. After the Giants, the Saints face Pittsburgh in Paris and then go on their bye, which buys the hand extra time.

RSO owners should keep Shough in your lineup if he was already there. The breaks are in his non-throwing hand, so the risk shows up mostly in grip and ball security, and he has practiced fully all week. The concern is volume and hits. He is dropping back a lot behind a struggling line, and another hit on that hand could change the timeline. In superflex and 2QB formats, make sure your QB3 is rostered and startable before Sunday's kickoff, and don't sell low on a second-year starter over an injury he is playing through.

Next, watch how Shough handles snaps, handoffs and fumbles against the Giants, whether the Saints add the hand to next week's report with any practice limits, and whether he plays through the Paris game before the bye.