It is Taysom’s Hill to Die On.
Is the writing on the wall for Hill?
As a fan of the New Orleans Saints, I think we all know about the Sean Payton Projects, and while some of them have been fun to watch develop, there has also been a fair share of misses. Taysom Hill is not one of them, and maybe the most meaningful one. Maybe not in the sense of producing, or winning games where we need it, but as the last real Sean Payton stamp on this team. He may not have become the Steve Young that Payton saw in him, but I believe his football career is far from over. In fact, it may just be starting, as he lines up for tight end going into the 2022 NFL season. I think the writing was always there, but new head coach Dennis Allen may be the one who finally pulled back the veil to unlock a matchup nightmare that we have already seen flashes of in the right positions.
How does he compare at QB?
Obviously, we have seen Taysom Hill at a variety of positions in his tenure with the Saints, but where has he excelled the most? At QB, I think inconsistent would be a fair word to use, not bad but also not great, he has filled the role admirably when needed against some adverse conditions. It is tough to compare Taysom at QB to another QB primarily because his playing time at QB is sporadic and he only comes in when injuries riddle the starter. I don’t want to make a comparison because it would feel unfair to Taysom, but if I had to I think he would be a weird mix between Matt Cassel and Vince Young, both obvious NFL-caliber quarterbacks who couldn’t quite put it all together.
How does he compare at TE?
Now, the tight-end comparison should come as a shock to no one, Jimmy Graham. Taysom may be slightly undersized at TE for blocking purposes, but as we have seen that will not stop him from using pure brute strength to seal the edge, and his unmatched speed at the position will allow him to get out and block corners or safeties like never seen before. Graham was never a great blocker, and it was the kryptonite to his time here as it became obvious when we were going to run versus throw. This is where Taysom has a step on Graham, despite being slightly undersized, his effort will show, and to be a good blocker, you have to “want” to block. Blocking is gnarly, rough, and involves a lot of hitting. I will say something else with those words that make perfect sense, Taysom is a gnarly football player who is rough and involves a lot of hitting in his game. Comparing them purely from their respective combine stats they were within a second in 40 time, burst score, and agility score, this will show up on the field more than anything. He is a willing blocker, with great hands, and a desire to play football at his very highest level. I am not saying he is Graham 2.0, but he will be exciting as a permanent TE.
In Summary:
To say I am excited is an understatement. I have been a big fan of Hill since we found him, but admittedly not as a pure QB. He adds an element that we have lacked, big-play potential. I remember him coming in when the offense seemed to be in a lull and he would hardly ever disappoint and usually spark a fire in the offense that carried on through the game. Now that he is assigned the TE role and will practice at that role through camp and into the season I think he will be an even bigger threat than he was lining up there or WR. As an added bonus, having Dalton as a respectable backup will allow Allen to use Taysom in a variety of roles similar to the way we did with Graham, but as an added threat to pass the ball in some trickery. I expect to see a lot of TE screens similar to what we did with Josh Hill, and a lot of guys unwillingly to take Taysom 1 on 1. To sweeten the deal, Taysom Hill is filling a role with a big question mark on it going into the offseason. The sky is the limit for TE Taysom.
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