Taysom Hill's status on the past two Saints gamedays has been a hot topic of conversation, with little clarity regarding the foot injury that has limited him to holding a clipboard as the backup quarterback in losses to the Eagles and Bills.
His unavailability for a meaningful on-field role was particularly confusing throughout a 31-6 loss to the Bills on Thanksgiving night, considering he was a full participant in practice throughout the week. Sean Payton said that despite his ability to practice, his lingering injury meant he would only be available in an emergency, with rookie Ian Book also inactive.
Payton has been mum on the nature of the injury, suffered in a loss to the Titans, Hill's first game back after a concussion suffered in Week 5. But that injury is to the plantar fascia in his foot, according to a report from Jeff Duncan of NOLA.com. The degree of the injury is unclear, but it does give clarity as to why it might limit Hill on gameday despite his ability to participate fully in practice.
The plantar fascia is tissue near the heel in the bottom of the foot. It's not a devastating injury, such as a ligament tear, but it is a painful and persistent one. For a quarterback that sits in the pocket and doesn't rely on footspeed, the injury is more manageable. For a player like Hill who relies heavily on athleticism and mobility, it could seriously limit his effectiveness in a game setting.
The injury will likely ring a bell for Saints fans, considering Drew Brees battled a torn plantar fascia in the 2015 season. Brees played through pain and the injury, and led the Saints to two consecutive wins to close a season that ended at 7-9.
Related
The Saints are back in action against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 13, another Thursday kickoff. Payton has declined to elaborate on his QB plans or injury statuses early in the week. New Orleans has lost four consecutive games and fallen out of the playoff picture after a 5-2 start. All of those games have been started by Trevor Siemian, with his performance faltering the past two weeks after a pair of 2-point losses to the Falcons and Titans. The Saints have been outscored by 36 points in losses to the Eagles and Bills, and have generated just 7 points on offense in the offense in the first three quarters of those games combined.
Should Hill be healthy enough and start against the Cowboys, it would be his 5th career appearance as the starting QB. Hill went 3-1 in relief of Brees, who missed multiple games with rib and lung injuries in the 2020 season.
The Cowboys, meanwhile, have availability concerns of their own. Reports indicate the team is leaning toward sitting star RB Ezekiel Elliot due to a nagging knee injury. The team's head coach, Mike McCarthy has also tested positive for COVID-19 and won't be available for the game, with others expected to be in a similar situation. The Saints battled a similar bout of absences in Week 2, when multiple assistant coaches were in quarantine and unavailable in a 26-7 loss to the Panthers.
Related
