For the second time in as many years, the New Orleans Saints will take the field without Drew Brees under center. Losing players to injury is a part of football, and teams are dealing with it every week. Injury is a virtual certainty. The reality is, most players are simply not Drew Brees.
Most of us who have played did not have the organization built around us. As a matter of fact, most of us were brought in as a supporting cast member for Brees’ main event. When the lead actor moves on, the show is changed forever. While we still expect to see Drew again this season, for the second year in a row, we get a glimpse of what life after Brees looks like. If reports are true, it’s going to look VERY different.
The Saints have a backup QB who has thrown for nearly 20,000 yards including a league leading 5,109 in 2019. Jameis Winston has thrown for 121 TD’s in his career including 25 to just 9 INT vs. the very team the Saints face today. That, however, is not the QB the Saints will reportedly send out to replace Drew Brees today.
Taysom Hill has become a cult hero of sorts in the Gulf South. His willingness to take on any role, his physicality, the energy he brings to a game, all have contributed to the fanfare he has received in his 4 seasons in New Orleans. One question has nevertheless remained from the very beginning of his acquisition. Can Taysom Hill be the future for the Saints at the quarterback position?
The question has persisted because it has never been answered. Sure, Payton has spoken many times of his respect for Hill. He has his belief that Hill could one day take that role for the Saints. The fact remains, even if Payton truly believes that, he’ll first have to see it.
That’s no different than any other player.
Regardless of where you were drafted or what they thought of you before you got here, your play is what ultimately gets you onto the field. We finally will get a taste of what the Saints staff has been seeing behind closed doors the past 3 years.
There are some realities that must be taken into account when you are looking at quarterbacks. Our only real looks into Taysom Hill as a quarterback have been in the preseason. I don’t know how other teams handle preseason games, but I know how the Saints do. If there is a preseason game on Friday, you get the game plan on Thursday. You have less than 24 hours to prepare yourself, with limited time and resources at your disposal. That’s not the biggest deal ever as an offensive lineman. It is for a quarterback.
It may sound like I’m setting up for an excuse. Quite the opposite. Performing well in the preseason as a quarterback in the Saints organization is not easy. We spend no time preparing. The offense is vanilla. Who knows who you’re playing with.
Last preseason, we got to see the most extensive action from Taysom Hill at quarterback. We also saw Teddy Bridgewater get the same opportunity. With all the negativity that has poured out of the national media in the last few days, you would suspect Taysom Hill was a disaster as quarterback. He finished the 2019 preseason 40/59 for 443 yds and 3 TD with 0 interceptions. A 106.8 quarterback rating. Teddy Bridgewater? 80.65.
Ultimately, the Saints gave Teddy the opportunity to lead the team during Drew’s absence. We all know, he responded by leading the team to a 5-0 record. Bridgewater did so, especially in the first couple games, on the backs of the defense and special teams. He made big plays when they needed him to and kept the mistakes to a minimum. Teddy Bridgewater’s performance led to a 63 million dollar contract from the Panthers. He was outplayed in the preseason in 2019.
Many of the people, who seem to feel that Taysom is the wrong choice, seem to base that belief on his opportunities to throw the football in his swiss army knife role. How one forms that opinion in 5 pass attempts, I do not know. For most of us, 20 passes are all we have seen. 18 regular season passing attempts, 2 in the postseason.
We have had some opportunities to see training camp practices, and the ability to see preseason games. For what it’s worth, all of us at WWL raved about the improvement shown in Taysom Hill’s accuracy during this year’s camp. There were clear strides made. We know how he has played in his most extensive action in the preseason. All we haven’t seen are the hundreds, if not thousands of reps that have occurred in practice, behind closed doors. Those reps have only been seen by the small group who made the decision about who would start today. A group led by Sean Payton.
For 13 and a half seasons Sean Payton has engineered one of, if not the greatest stretches of offensive football in the history of the NFL. He has done it by finding ways to draw out every last drop of talent his players have. He speaks often of “having a vision for the player.” They ask themselves, who is this player and what must we do to maximize their talent. For 3 seasons, Sean Payton has been maximizing Taysom Hill’s skillset. Using his speed, physicality, athleticism and humility to create a hybrid player the likes of which the NFL has never seen. Now Hill may be getting a new challenge. If the reporting is right, one of the brightest offensive minds in NFL history will be building and offense around one of its most unique talents.
There is no telling what exactly this offense looks like with Taysom Hill as it’s conductor. What is for certain, is that it will not look anything like what we have been watching over the last 14 and a half years with Drew Brees at the helm. Sean Payton has proven that he is better at building offensive production than you, or I. Inside his head are the answers to all the questions that we are asking ourselves. Luckily, we’ll get to see them unfold this afternoon. I can’t wait.