How the New Orleans Saints Can Help Taysom Hill Improve His Passing Game

There's a real chance that the New Orleans Saints will turn to Taysom Hill as their starting quarterback in 2021. Fellow quarterback Jameis Winston is playing on a one-year deal, and there seems to be a sense that Drew Brees is eyeing retirement in the offseason. According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, Hill could be auditioning for the 2021 job now.

"The Saints view this as a chance to get an evaluation of Hill at quarterback now and for the future, with Brees still likely to retire after this season, according to sources," Schefter wrote.

Regardless of what the Saints do at the position in the future, Hill is their starter for the time being—though, per Schefter, the Saints could turn to Winston if Hill struggles. Brees remains on injured reserve while recovering from multiple rib fractures and a collapsed lung.

Brees' status on IR means that he'll be out at least another game, though given the extent of his injuries, he could be out longer. If the Saints aren't willing to turn to Winston in the meantime, they need to focus on getting more production out of the passing game.

Here, we'll take an in-depth look at Hill's situation and a few ways that New Orleans can help Hill bring a bit more balance to the offense moving forward.

Before we dive into how the Saints can help Hill improve as a passer, we must first examine why they should do so. After all, the Saints are 2-0 in his two games at quarterback. They just need to continue doing what they've been doing, right?

Well, not exactly. While New Orleans has indeed won its last two games, Hill hasn't exactly shined as a signal-caller. He was a solid 18-of-23 for 233 yards in Week 11. However, that performance came against an Atlanta Falcons defense that is ranked 31st against the pass and that has looked laughable against virtually every quarterback not named Derek Carr this season.

Against a better Denver Broncos defense in Week 12 (seventh against the pass), Hill was an underwhelming 9-of-16 for 78 yards with an interception. There's virtually no chance that the Saints would have routed the Broncos the way they did had Denver not been forced to start a reserve receiver at quarterback.

Now, it's worth noting that Hill has thrived as a runner and has two rushing touchdowns in each of his past two games. However, that's not what we're focusing on here. If there comes a point where the Saints cannot count on Hill's legs, they have to be able to count on his arm and his decision-making. Right now, that doesn't seem possible.

New Orleans needs to figure out if it can depend on Hill's passing ability for the long term. He is set to earn $16.159 million, with roughly $11.16 million guaranteed next season. Cutting him isn't financially feasible, and if Brees retires and Hill cannot be the starter, the Saints could be in a bind at quarterback.

There is also a lot on the line in New Orleans' final five-game stretch—one that includes the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 15. The Saints have just a one-game lead over the Seattle Seahawks and Green Bay Packers for the NFC's No. 1 seed, and one slip-up could cost them home-field advantage and the conference's only bye.

That bye could be critical if Brees' recovery lingers into the postseason.

So, how can the Saints help Hill improve and help ensure they nab the top seed? Let's take a look.

Alvin Kamara might just be the best running back in football. If he's not, he's certainly one of the most versatile. He can run inside and hit the edge, and he can catch the ball. Boy, can he catch the ball. Kamara is dangerous as a receiver out of the backfield or lined up in the slot, nabbing swing passes and bubble screens or streaking down the field against cornerbacks in man coverage.

Kamara is a reliable target no matter where he is on the field, as evidence by the 68 receptions, 648 receiving yards and four receiving touchdowns he has produced in 2020.

Do you know how many of Kamara's receptions have come in the last two games? One, for minus-two yards. What's even more baffling is the fact that Kamara has only been targeted three times since Hill took over as the starter.

The Saints have simply taken him out of the passing game and used him more as a runner (24 carries) over the past two weeks.

It's fair to point out that the Saints largely played with a lead against Atlanta and Denver, but if New Orleans wants to evaluate Hill as a passer, it should resemble a complete offense.

Hill is more suited to be an option quarterback than a pocket passer willing to take what the defense gives him, but come on. It feels like any quarterback—even a practice-squad wide receiver like Kendall Hinton—could net 100 passing yards by repeatedly tossing the ball in Kamara's direction.

If the Saints only expect Hill to be a run-first, read-option quarterback, what was the point of giving Kamara at $75 million deal that reflects his value as a premier pass-catcher? New Orleans has known that Brees' days are numbered, and extending Kamara was the perfect way to ensure that its next quarterback would have easy completions and easy yards early in his career.

The Saints have paid Kamara. They have him available and healthy. They need to use him. As a receiver, where he thrives.

While getting Kamara more involved in the passing game is a good first step, the Saints cannot expect their aerial attack to revolve solely around him—OK, maybe they can, but Hill will occasionally need another target beyond the sticks.

Getting tight end Jared Cook involved in the passing game once again could help provide Hill with another outlet. A good tight end can be an inexperienced quarterback's biggest asset, as he provides a big, sure-handed target who is usually covered by a smaller safety or slower linebacker.

While Hill is no youngster at 30 years old, he has fewer professional starts at QB than rookies Tua Tagovailoa and Jake Luton. While Sean Payton has been grooming Hill for the better part of four years, he still needs to treat him like the inexperienced starter that he is.

Yet, Cook has been virtually absent since Brees went down and the Saints have transitioned to more of a power-running base offense around Hill. After catching 21 passes for 279 yards and four touchdowns in the first nine weeks, Cook has seen one target and one catch since.

This is partially because the passing game has lagged with Hill and in part, because Payton has moved away from Cook as his primary tight end. As Mike Clay of ESPN recently pointed out, Cook has seen fewer snaps than blocking tight end Adam Troutman in four straight games.

One can certainly argue that by having Troutman opening up running lanes, the Saints are playing to Hill's strengths. That's true, but it also means that a proven pass-catcher like Cook is spending a lot of time watching from the sidelines.

If New Orleans wants Hill to improve as a passer, it needs to get Cook back into the lineup more.

While Hill hasn't taken advantage of outlet receivers like Kamara and Cook, he's done a pretty good job of getting the ball to No. 1 receiver Michael Thomas. Though he missed much of the early season because of a variety of injuries, Thomas returned to the starting lineup two weeks before Hill took over at quarterback.

In two games with Hill, Thomas has been targeted 18 times and has 13 receptions for 154 yards.

The Saints need to ensure that Hill continues putting the ball into Thomas' hands. While Cook and Kamara can help provide easy completions underneath, Thomas is one of the most dependable receivers in the NFL when it comes to pushing the ball downfield.

Is Thomas a burner? No, but he's a nightmare matchup for most defensive backs one-on-one, and he's as sure-handed as they come. There's a reason why he logged more than 120 targets in each of his first four seasons. When the ball comes within arm's reach, Thomas is going to come down with it more often than not.

Hill and Thomas are still feeling each other out, which is something Thomas alluded to following an uncharacteristic drop in Week 11.

"You know, Taysom has a fastball," Thomas told reporters.

This is precisely why the Saints need to continue making Thomas the first read for Hill. While Brees is the more accurate quarterback, Hill possesses more arm strength.

If Hill can continue pushing the ball down the field with Thomas, he can help back off opposing defensive fronts—which will, in turn, open up running lanes and those easier underneath throws that have largely eluded Hill to this point.

So, here's the inevitable point when we suggest that while New Orleans can better help Hill as a passer, it shouldn't force him to be the gunslinger that he isn't quite ready to be. That would make about as much sense as forcing Brees to be a scrambler just because Payton wants to change up his offense.

This means that Hill should still be utilized as a runner on occasion, while Kamara and fellow running back Latavius Murray should be the focal points of the offense. Sticking with the ground game will help slow the opposing pass rush, set up play action and take pressure off Hill's right shoulder.

The objective here is for New Orleans to find more balance on offense and to get more productivity from Hill as a passer—not to have him throw 40 times per game. Hill wasn't a particularly prolific passer at Brigham Young—he passed for just 2,323 yards with 12 touchdowns and 11 interceptions as a senior in 2016—and the Saints aren't going to turn him into Patrick Mahomes in the next couple of weeks.

New Orleans needs to stick to the ground game when the situation calls for it—which could be often against often late in games against subpar teams like the Falcons, Minnesota Vikings and Philadelphia Eagles. However, it shouldn't force the running game when it doesn't have to. Against Denver, for example, the Saints picked up 14 first downs by rushing and only four via the pass. That's not a ratio that is going to work every single week.

Against the Falcons next week, allowing Hill to throw early instead of repeatedly testing Atlanta's sixth-ranked run defense should be the preferred strategy. Ideally, Hill can be even better as a passer than he was two weeks ago.

The Saints should want more out of Hill through the air, but they shouldn't take away his biggest strength. That's the treat of the run and/or play action, and it should serve Hill well so long as he's making progress in other areas of his game.