One of the more curious subplots of the Sean Payton era is continuing on without him: the fate of New Orleans Saints dynamo Taysom Hill, who found mixed success as a quarterback while lining up at a variety of other positions including tight end, slot receiver, and running back. With Dennis Allen having replaced Payton as head coach, there will be a different plan for Hill moving forwards. Allen spoke about the vision for Hill on Tuesday from NFL owners meetings in south Florida.
Allen told NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill that Hill is focused on playing tight end this season, and his contract reflects that. The $10 million per-year average from his deal ranks eleventh around the NFL for tight ends, and the $21.5 million in guarantees he received at the time of signing would be eighth-best out of the group. So he’s firmly in their plans even if he isn’t starting games at quarterback.
ESPN’s Mike Triplett adds that Allen doesn’t envision Hill “standing next to me on the sideline” with Winston starting under center, meaning the Saints will have a different backup. Right now, their other quarterbacks under contract are Ian Book and Blake Bortles. It feels likely the Saints will add a fourth passer for training camp to round out the group, possibly through the 2022 NFL draft. One of last year’s backups, Trevor Siemian, was quickly signed by the Chicago Bears in free agency.
Exciting as Hill has been in this role at times, you’ve got to question the wisdom of paying him like a top-ten player at his position when he isn’t an every-down player. Hill is undersized to handle a heavy workload as a traditional inline tight end, and he’s struggled with injuries throughout his college and pro careers. He suffered a serious concussion on an illegal hit when running a route last year. He’ll have to split time with Adam Trautman and Nick Vannett to have any staying power as a full-time tight end. This could preclude the Saints from spending a draft pick on a rookie at the position, too. Any first-year player would be competing with Juwan Johnson to rank fourth on the depth chart.
If they’re going to invest this kind of contract in a tight end, why didn’t the Saints just wait and sign one of the top tight ends available in free agency? Instead they’re asking Hill to pack on all the muscle he shed to compete for the quarterback job last summer while recovering from injuries to both feet, his throwing hand, and his brain. It feels like a situation where the Saints made things more complicated for themselves than it needed to be. After restructuring Hill’s contract earlier this offseason they’re tied to him through June 1, 2023; that’s when Hill could be released without costing the Saints any extra money against the salary cap. Sean Payton made sure to get Hill paid before he quit as head coach. Now the Saints have to figure out what to do with him.
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