Taysom

Hill

Hill also recovered his own fumble. This is getting rather ridiculous. Today was the third time this season Hill finished with negative rushing yards. All his explosion is gone during his age-35 season. It’s time for the Saints to move on from his change-of-pace handles. Fantasy managers should have already done so long ago.

Neal will presumably start with RB Alvin Kamara (knee/ankle) sidelined. The Dolphins’ run defense allows 5.0 yards per carry and only two teams have allowed more explosive run plays than them (47). Saints TE Taysom Hill could handle a frustrating number of carries, particularly in the red zone, but Neal should at least operate as the lead running back on passing downs, while handling a reasonable rushing workload. Neal is an albeit uncomfortable borderline RB2/3.

Hill also failed to complete both of his passing attempts. The Saints had a sizeable package of running plays for him in short-yardage situations as he picked up multiple short first downs. Hill also got goal line usage, but was stuffed multiple times. The Saints stuck him at quarterback for a third-and-goal in the second half but the snap sailed over Hill’s head, which he then picked up and threw out of the end zone for an intentional grounding penalty. The offense as a whole failed to convert in the red zone, with many of the stalls driven by failed plays to Hill. As long as Alvin Kamara (knee) is out, Hill will still have a role in the backfield, though it just makes the rest of the backfield murkier rather than making Hill fantasy relevant.

Hill had one passing attempt go incomplete and one target that was incomplete as well. The Saints would do Hill a favor if they didn’t make it so obvious every time they were about to hand him the ball around the goal line. Hill’s package has never looked so ineffective heading into the Saints’ Week 11 bye week.

Hill ripped off a 29-yard rumbling run up the middle on the Saints’ fourth drive and was allowed to stay in for two more plays. He then gained one yard on the ground before throwing an incomplete pass to No. 2 WR Rashid Shaheed. Hill’s most consequential play occurred late in the game, when head coach Kellen Moore subbed out rookie Tyler Shough for Hill on 4th-and-2 from the Rams’ seven-yard line. Hill’s seemingly-obvious run up the middle was stuffed for a two-yard loss, robbing Shough of a valuable rep. Hill is a boom-bust TE2 against the Panthers next week.

Johnson largely had a nondescript day, as the Saints’ offense struggled to move the chains. The veteran tight end picked up a first down on the Saints’ second drive, and later earned a target on 4th-and-2 in the fourth quarter, though he followed that play up with a drop. Taysom Hill totaled just three touches in his gadget role. Johnson is just a borderline TE1/2 against the Rams next week.

Miller injured his knee in the second quarter but was able to walk into the locker room under his own power. He will not return to the game, but the Saints will hope that the injury isn’t serious. Miller finished the day with one carry for seven yards. Expect some more work for Devin Neal and also Taysom Hill.

Hill played sparingly once again, with 12 snaps after a nine-snap debut in Week 5, but head coach Kellen Moore subbed him in for at least one high-leverage play, a goal line snap from the one. Hill did what he does best and burst into the end zone for his first score of the year. Hill went from six carries and one pass attempt in Week 5 to one total touch in Week 6. His role is minuscule, but he is at least doing enough to be a thorn in the side of multiple players on the offense going forward. Alvin Kamara, who now has more competition for goal line touches, will be most affected by Hill’s presence. Hill himself is nothing more than a touchdown-or-bust TE3 right now.

In other words, should Spencer Rattler get hurt or benched, Hill could be a factor in what happens — it’s not just Tyler Shough anymore. We’d expect Hill’s work to grow a little this week, perhaps enough to cannibalize Kendre Miller and Alvin Kamara’s ceiling cases. It seems like Moore doesn’t have a limitation yet on the number of ways he’s envisioning using Hill and that makes him fantasy-interesting even if last week’s line is not exciting.

Hill made his season debut after being activated off the PUP list this week following offseason knee surgery. The 35-year-old wasn’t targeted in the passing game and saw most of his action on the last drive of the game when the Saints were trying to run out the clock. He’s unlikely to be fully healthy for a few weeks, and Kendre Miller is now healthy, so there isn’t really a fantasy-friendly role here.