The New Orlenas Saints plan to apply the first-round tender to quarterback Taysom Hill, a pending restricted free agent, per a report from ESPN’s Adam Schefter. This one-year, fully-guaranteed contract is estimated to be worth between $4 and $6 million (Schefter clarified that the total is expected to fall in the middle, near $5 million), and will allow the Saints to match any contract offers Hill receives from other teams. If they decline to match an offer sheet, the Saints will recoup a first-round draft pick from the team that signs Hill away.
It’s not really unexpected given the length to which Saints coach Sean Payton has talked up Hill this offseason, doubling down on the notion that he and the team view Hill as franchise quarterback material. Hill, who turns 29 this August, has thrown 15 passes in 42 career NFL games (including the playoffs). But this tag is a real, tangible commitment to Hill after months of media chatter.
Still, Schefter added that the Saints are prepared to commit even more to Hill. He reported that the teams plans to re-sign Hill to a long-term contract extension anyway, so this tender may end up having just bought them some time. It could also help give the Saints an idea of Hill’s value on the open market, which may be difficult to identify internally — more than half of Hill’s 2019 snaps came on special teams, and most of his time on offense was spent at slot receiver.
