The Broncos are interested in long-time New Orleans tight end Taysom Hill, but itap not clear whether Hill will make a quick decision — or whether he ultimately will decide to play again at all.
Head coach Sean Payton said Monday that the Broncos will talk with Hill about what his plans are after Hill said goodbye to a nine-year stint in New Orleans last week. Payton, though, insisted that “there’s no hurry” in coming to any kind of decision regarding Hill and added that he’ll see Hill in Canton, Ohio, this weekend when Drew Brees is inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
“I’ll see him here in about five days,” said Payton, who first mentioned the interest in the 35-year-old on Saturday to NFL Network. “We’ll see where he’s at and kind of go from there. … The key thing is his health and where he’s at mentally. I don’t want to assume that he still wants to play. I haven’t had a chance to talk to him.”
The pair have deep shared history, though.
Payton has often told the story about scouting a back-up Green Bay quarterback on tape ahead of roster cutdowns in 2017 and continually noticing Hill. The Packers cut him and New Orleans scooped him up, setting in motion a jack-of-all-trades career that saw Hill play quarterback, running back, tight end and more. He has thrown for 2,523 yards in his career, rushed for 2,551 and caught 110 passes for 1,034 yards.
Hill missed all of 2024 with a major knee injury that Payton described as a needing “a complete knee reconstruction” and then appeared in 13 games for the Saints last season.
Hill’s knee surgery was done by Dr. Karim Meijer, who now is the Broncos’ team doctor. Payton said Hill has traveled to Denver multiple times to be checked by Meijer, which also means the Broncos have a good handle on Hill’s health status.
“He’s super unique,” said tight end Adam Trautman, who played three seasons with Hill. “He was one of my friends in New Orleans. He’s super talented, obviously. He can do pretty much everything. He’s the true definition of a Swiss Army knife. We’ll see. Front office is in control of that, obviously.
“If he comes here, he’d be a great addition. You know he’d fit the culture.”
