Well isn’t that interesting. The New Orleans Saints changed Taysom Hill’s position listing on their official website roster Monday afternoon — after being listed as a tight end throughout the offseason, training camp, and in three preseason games, he’s now grouped with the quarterbacks. The Saints’ unofficial depth chart still lists him as a co-starter at tight end with Juwan Johnson but that doesn’t reflect what we saw over the summer. Hill himself has said he doesn’t think of himself as a tight end.
Update: The unofficial team depth chart was later edited to reflect Hill’s change in position.
Buy Saints TicketsThe move makes what was a quirk of their roster into nothing more than a formality. Hill was practicing with the quarterbacks throughout the summer, at times leading two-minute drills himself while Derek Carr, Jameis Winston, and Jake Haener worked in other areas. But does it mean anything more?
Maybe, but probably not. The Saints could trade Winston if another team presents a tempting offer, but there’s been nothing to suggest that kind of deal is in the works. Haener didn’t help himself with a couple of interceptions in the final preseason game. There’s an argument to be made in favor of the Saints moving Winston and preparing some combination of Hill and Haener as the backup plan should Carr miss time, but there isn’t a trade offer floating around that makes that argument worth listening to.
The rookie isn’t ready to be the next man up, and Hill’s time spent at other positions means he can’t be limited to a backup quarterback role. He’s one of the team’s most effective runners and an effective passer and receiver in certain situations. He’s more valuable moving all over the formation than on the bench.
One of the first things Dennis Allen said when he became head coach was that Hill’s experiment as a full-time quarterback was over; he specifically said that he wanted Hill in the game, not next to him standing on the sidelines with a headset and clipboard. Hopefully Allen better uses his talents in the fall. Hill has converted a first down on 67% of his carries, catches, and passes on third or fourth down when the Saints needed 3 yards or fewer in his career. There aren’t many short-yardage players better than him in this league, no matter what position he’s listed at.
