Jack Bech’s trip back to New Orleans this Sunday is about a lot more than football.
The Raiders wide receiver is set to play the Saints at the Superdome, the same building where he spent countless days as a kid with his family watching games. It’s also the city where his life changed on New Year’s Day in 2025, when his brother, Tiger, was killed in a New Orleans terror attack that left 13 others dead.
For Bech, this will be his first NFL game in the city tied to both his happiest and most painful memories. He talked about that return with Sam Warren of The Athletic earlier this week and made clear what he wants from the day.
“I just want to rewrite this wrong in New Orleans,” Bech told Warren. “Get that nasty, dirty taste out of our mouth.”
The Superdome was once part of a childhood dream for Jack and Tiger. They grew up going to Saints games there and imagined one day stepping onto that field themselves.
Bech said reaching that moment would mean everything to his brother. “I know he couldn’t be any happier right now,” Bech said.
Las Vegas drafted Bech in the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft, and he has already made an impact early in his rookie season with five catches for 48 yards and one touchdown through two games. The Raiders come into Sunday trying to move to 3-0 after going 3-14 last season.
Bech knows the emotions around this game could be heavy, and Raiders receiver coach Zach Azzanni has helped him prepare for that. “He said, ‘Play the game with emotions; don’t be emotional,’” Bech told Warren. “It’s something that’s been super helpful for me.”
However the afternoon unfolds, Bech said he plans to give everything he has. And when he walks into the Superdome, he’ll be carrying Tiger with him.
In Other News...
Saints Fans Have Every Reason To Hate This Tyler Shough Ruling
The Saints had another rough Week 3 finish against the Raiders, and one sequence involving Tyler Shough has only added to the frustration. The NFL upheld the ruling on the field, saying Shough lost control of the ball before his arm started moving forward, leaving the play as a fumble and not an incomplete pass.
For Saints fans, the irritation is obvious because the league handled a similar-looking situation differently in Week 1 when Jared Goff was involved. NFL vice president of instant replay Mark Butterworth explained why the two plays were separated, but the explanation is unlikely to make New Orleans feel any better about how the call broke in a game already going the wrong way. [Read more 🡒]
Saints Collapse Came Down To Tyler Shough And One Brutal Call
The Saints had their best early footing under Kellen Moore on Sunday, jumping ahead after the first quarter and giving themselves a chance to carry that edge into a needed win over the Raiders. Instead, the game unraveled late in a 35-27 loss, with New Orleans giving the ball away four times in the fourth quarter and watching a promising night slip into a frustrating collapse.
Tyler Shough was at the center of it, with multiple turnovers and a strip that led to one of the games most contentious moments, when Las Vegas came away with the fumble recovery. A late Juwan Johnson fumble only deepened the damage as the Raiders kept answering with offense, leaving the Saints to sort through how a game they once controlled turned so quickly in the final period. [Read more 🡒]
Saints Fans Have Every Reason To Be Furious Over This Replay Ruling
The Saints already had plenty to argue about during their game against the Raiders, and the replay decision only deepened the frustration. Adrian Hills crew drew heat for a series of controversial calls against New Orleans, including multiple penalties on the defense, but the play that really stuck with fans was a quarterback drop that ended with the Raiders coming away with the ball.
NFL vice president of instant replay Mark Butterworth upheld the ruling after review, saying the quarterback lost control before his arm came forward. The problem for New Orleans is that the explanation landed differently than another similar play earlier this season, when the league ruled it an incomplete pass, leaving the Saints and their fans to wonder why a key judgment can look so different from one week to the next. [Read more 🡒]