Taysom Hill to Focus on Playing TE After Saints Signed Jameis Winston to New Contract

The competition for the New Orleans Saints' starting quarterback job in 2022 may be over before it even started.

According to Nick Underhill of WWL-TV, new Saints head coach Dennis Allen said Tuesday that the plan is for Taysom Hill to focus primarily on playing tight end during the upcoming season. 

Hill has seen plenty of action at quarterback over the past two seasons, but on the heels of New Orleans re-signing Jameis Winston to a two-year, $28 million contract in free agency, it appears Winston is the clear favorite to be the starter under center.

After Hill played quarterback collegiately at BYU, the Green Bay Packers signed him as an undrafted free agent in 2017, and he ended up in New Orleans after getting waived.

Hill was primarily a special teamer, utility player and emergency quarterback in his first few seasons, but his role at quarterback expanded in 2020.

When Drew Brees was out with an injury, then-Saints head coach Sean Payton turned to Hill rather than Winston. Hill would start four games at quarterback and post a 3-1 record, completing 72.7 percent of his passes for 928 yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions.

Winston beat out Hill for the starting quarterback job last season after Brees retired, but Winston suffered a torn ACL and Trevor Siemian struggled, which led to Hill taking over.

Hill once again excelled in terms of the win-loss record with a 4-1 mark, and he completed 58.2 percent of his attempts for 978 yards, four touchdowns and five picks.

His greatest contributions at the quarterback position came as a runner, as he rushed for 374 yards and five touchdowns in 2021 after rushing for 457 yards and eight scores the previous year.

In November, Hill signed a unique four-year, $40 million contract extension with the Saints with the potential to become a far more lucrative deal based on incentives if he primarily played quarterback.

Unless Winston gets injured again in 2022 or struggles mightily, however, it seems like Hill will be playing under his base contract.

Hill has played essentially every skill position on offense during his NFL career, including tight end, but 2022 could be his first full season of committing to one spot if Allen sticks with his current plan.

One can only assume there will still be special quarterback packages in place for Hill, though, especially in short-yardage and red-zone situations because of his penchant for making plays with his legs.

Hill is likely a work in progress at tight end with just 34 receptions for 388 yards and seven touchdowns to his credit as a pass-catcher during his career, but he may be the Saints' best option at the position over Adam Trautman, Nick Vannett and Juwan Johnson.

The Saints are somewhat short on offensive playmakers outside of wide receiver Michael Thomas and running back Alvin Kamara, and deploying Hill primarily at tight end would give Winston a much-needed weapon.