Taysom Hill

Taysom Hill will be “the guy” once Drew Brees retires, per Jay Glazer of Fox Sports.

Fantasy Impact

Hill signed a two-year, $21 million contract with the Saints this off-season. He is expected to be the Saints’ QB of the future once Brees retires. “No smokescreen, he’s the guy,” said Glazer. “Sean Payton loves him but it’s not just him, the whole team loves him, not just Sean Payton. Watch a Saints game. When he’s in the game, watch the other players on the sideline, watch their reaction. They all get up and stand on the sidelines to watch him. I think Sean was always hoping to unleash him on the league without anyone seeing him before but now we’ve seen it with Lamar Jackson. He’s a bigger Lamar Jackson. No, it’s not a smokescreen. He likes him that much, he’ll be the guy. He’s with the perfect coach for that.” Hill recently gained TE eligibility in ESPN fantasy leagues. The 29-year-old hauled in 19 catches for 234 yards and six touchdowns in 2019. Hill will most likely be used as a gadget player in 2020, but it remains to be seen if he will be Brees’ future successor.

Saints offensive weapon Taysom Hill has been granted TE/Flex eligibility in ESPN fantasy leagues and he’ll no longer be eligible at QB.

Fantasy Impact

This is huge news for the “Taysom Hill really isn’t a quarterback” crowd. As a TE and Flex option, Hill will have value for many fantasy teams in 2020. While ESPN reserves the right to strip his TE/Flex eligibility in favor of QB eligibility should he take over as the starter in 2020, that isn’t likely to occur given Drew Brees’ track record. Last season, as a receiver, Hill caught 19 balls on 22 targets, for 234 and six TDs while also rushing for 156 yards and a score. With just over 90 fantasy points in 0.5 ppr leagues, Hill would have finished as TE22. He’s got some deep-league flex appeal with this news of becoming TE/Flex eligible in ESPN fantasy leagues.

Taysom Hill is signing a two-year, $21 million contract with the Saints. It’s a one-year extension of the first round, $4.6 million tender he was offered in March.

Fantasy Impact

Hill will earn $16 million fully guaranteed, plus $1 million in incentives. With the new deal, Hill will remain in New Orleans until 2021. The Saints are closing in on a deal to sign QB Jameis Winston. Hill will continue his gadget role and will most likely be third on the quarterback depth chart behind Drew Brees and Winston.

The Saints will reportedly use a first-round tender on quarterback Taysom Hill.

Fantasy Impact

This is big news in that it essentially guarantees Hill will return to the Saints, as a team would need to give up a first-round pick in order to sign him away from New Orleans. The Saints have used Hill in many ways, and it's hard to imagine his value would be higher outside of New Orleans, so this move makes sense. While Hill may not be consistent enough to be a weekly fantasy-relevant player, he is intriguing as a QB-eligible player in a lot of 2QB leagues.

NFL Network's Tom Pelissero believes that Taysom Hill could receive a first or second-round tender from the Saints.

Fantasy Impact

That would require teams to sacrifice a first or second-round NFL Draft pick in order to sign Hill away from New Orleans. While Hill has proven valuable in Sean Payton's system, it's hard to imagine that another team would value Hill in the same way. As such, Hill's likely to return to New Orleans at this point in a role where he was fantasy relevant in 2019.