It’s so easy for NFL broadcasters to fall into the habit of using hyperbole in place of analysis, and when that happens, fans almost always notice.
After all, it comes off as silly. And you’re probably not going to hear a more farfetched take this season than what CBS NFL analyst Ross Tucker said about Taysom Hill on Sunday.
During the third quarter of the Saints’ game against the Titans, Hill lined up as a quarterback and picked up four yards on a designed run. The play was nothing spectacular, but Tucker wanted viewers to know just how much he loves Hill’s game. He called Hill “one of the greatest football players ever.”
Ross Tucker calls Taysom Hill one of the greatest football players ever. For real life!
"This guy is like Jim Thorpe… he's like the perfect football player." pic.twitter.com/wyICHTUU5o
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) September 10, 2023
He even went as far as to compare Hill to Jim Thorpe.
Now, Hill is a versatile player. He can play some quarterback and can line up at any skill position. Tucker was likely trying to convey that versatility. But to call Hill “one of the greatest football players ever” is objectively nonsense. He’s –at best — average at several positions on the field, which is unique. No team is going to build around Taysom Hill, though.
You can’t blame NFL fans for mocking that take.