Who is Taysom Hill, the Saints player Sean Payton is obsessed with?
By Josh Hill
Taysom Hill was a star on Sunday afternoon in New Orleans, but who is he and why should you care?
One of the biggest stars of the Saints win over the Panthers on Sunday was a third-string quarterback. Taysom Hill was all over the FOX broadcast and even trended on Twitter, but you can’t be blamed for never having heard of him before.
Chances are, you actually have heard of him before but you just forgot.
Why did we hear about him so much?
Hill isn’t a special teamer. He’s the third-string quarterback, which is why it’s so bizarre to see a guy with No. 7 running around the field during kicks. It’s not a gimmick, Hill was actually really good as a defender.
His name first came up after a botched punt by the Panthers. Hill didn’t block the kick but got around the edge quick enough to spook the punter into dropping the ball.
We next heard about him after he came screaming down the field on a kick return that he successfully defended.
It was mentioned at this point that Sean Payton has pegged Hill as the quarterback of the future for the Saints. That’s yet to be seen but it’s hard to argue against how much the head coach loves the guy.
That name is familiar, where have I heard it before?
If you followed college football over the last few years, then Hill’s name has come up a few times. He was a Heisman hopeful at points of his career at BYU, but that never ended up panning out. He suffered four different season-ending injuries during his career, which sets him up beautifully for a redemption story that football fans fawn over.
A lot needs to happen for Hill to become the heir to Drew Brees, but it can’t be discounted. How many quarterbacks who are stars now have come from nothing. Aaron Rodgers is probably the most notable exception to the backup-taking-over rule, and even he sat in the shadows for a while. Whether it’s Tom Brady or Case Keenum, the journey of a guy from benchwarmer to starter on a Super Bowl contender is an age-old football story.
Whether or not that ends up happening with Hill is yet to be seen. But he’s on the radar after Week 13 and will be a name to keep tabs on in the future.