When it came time to grind out the closing minutes of their second win of the season, the New Orleans Saints turned to the player they’ve traditionally leaned on in those types of spots.
New Orleans took possession with 7:35 remaining in the fourth quarter Nov. 9 at Carolina, holding a 17-7 lead. That has been unfamiliar territory for this Saints team, but first-year head coach Kellen Moore found himself doing what some of his predecessors have done in that situation: Putting the ball in Taysom Hill’s hands and letting him do his thing.
“Everything kind of came together to the point where we could just rely on one of our best playmakers to go out there and make great decisions and put us in position to win,” said tight end Foster Moreau.
That final drive spanned 14 plays — 11 before three kneel-downs to chew up the final two minutes of game clock. Hill was on the field for nine of those first 11 snaps, often with the ball in his hands. And it was Hill who delivered two of the most crucial plays on the drive, twice gaining five yards to convert third-and-4 with a read-option keeper to keep the wick on the clock burning.
“He was a big, big part of that (drive),” offensive coordinator Doug Nussmeier said.
And it was also the first time this season that Hill was able to truly impact the game in the way he’d done throughout his career before a major injury ended his 2024 season.
Hill is nearing the one-year anniversary of the date he tore his ACL against the Los Angeles Rams. He missed an entire off-season, missed training camp and was on the Physically Unable to Perform list for the first four weeks of the season.
That time away made things doubly challenging. Not only was Hill, at 34 years old, attempting to play high-level football again after an injury that could have ended his career, but, because of his unique skillset and the fact that he could not practice until a few days before his season debut, his first-year coaching staff had to solve how to fit him into the offense on the fly.
There were theories and action plans, but no way to really put them into motion until Hill got back on the field.
“We knew he’d be a big piece of it,” Nussmeier said. “For us, it’s been an adjustment to figure out how best to use him.”
That was borne out in Hill’s first five games back in the lineup. He played a total of 44 offensive snaps. When he did have the ball in his hands, it didn’t always look right. Hill scored a touchdown in his second game back, but only one of his first 18 touches went for an explosive play, and the overwhelming majority were snuffed out for next to nothing.
But New Orleans stuck with him and reaped the benefits against Carolina. Some of it was dictated by game situation, but Hill played a season-high 25 snaps and recorded a season-high seven carries. The numbers aren’t attention grabbing (22 yards, 2.9 yards per carry), but the impact was.
“We’ve found the last few weeks a little bit better ways in which we can utilize him,” coach Kellen Moore said. “His unique trait is his ability is to play so many different positions, and it’s just about connecting all those dots. I like the way he played the last couple weeks, … it’s just a matter of giving him more opportunities.”
And it would seem to make sense for Hill to get more opportunities this week against a team he has hounded throughout his career.
Hill has had more success against the Atlanta Falcons than any other team, no matter the role.
As a runner, Hill has turned his 72 carries against Atlanta into 476 yards and six touchdowns. As a receiver, he’s caught each of his 12 targets for 136 yards and a touchdown. He’s carved their defenses up as a passer, completing 76% of his attempts against them for 702 yards, four touchdowns and a 122.2 passer rating. As a team, the Saints have gone 11-6 against the Falcons when Hill plays at least one snap.
New Orleans would certainly like to tap into more of Hill’s history this weekend.