Taysom Hill’s nine-year run with the New Orleans Saints has come to an end.
The Pocatello native and Highland High School graduate announced Wednesday night that he will not be returning to the Saints for a 10th season, closing the book on one of the most unusual and productive careers in franchise history. Hill did not announce his retirement, leaving the door open to sign with another team.
“I still don’t have a clear answer about what the future holds, but I know that returning to New Orleans is not in the cards,” Hill wrote in a statement posted to social media.
New Orleans Saints quarterback Taysom Hill (7) runs for a 20-yard touchdown against the Indianapolis Colts during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Oct. 29, 2023 in Indianapolis.
Michael Conroy/AP Photo
Green Bay signed Hill as an undrafted free agent out of BYU in 2017. But the Saints claimed him off waivers later that year and turned him into one of the NFL’s most unique weapons.
He lined up at quarterback, running back, wide receiver, tight end and special teams, which earned him the moniker “the Human Swiss Army Knife.” Hill leaves with 2,426 passing yards, 2,551 rushing yards, 1,034 receiving yards and 57 total touchdowns over 118 games. Last season, he became the only player of the Super Bowl era to reach 1,000 career yards passing, rushing and receiving.
“When we needed more, he gave us everything,” said New Orleans Super Bowl-winning and soon-to-be Hall of Fame quarterback Drew Brees in a tribute video put out by the Saints. “Because that’s what it means to be a Saint in New Orleans. We adapt. We endure. No shortcuts. No excuses. All heart and soul.”
But Hill’s last two seasons were derailed by injuries.
He tore his ACL and suffered additional knee ligament damage in a Week 13 game in December 2024, requiring a partial knee reconstruction. He opened the 2025 season on the physically unable to perform list and played 13 games — his fewest since 2018 — before suffering an AC joint sprain in the regular-season finale against Atlanta.
Hill said he’d spent the offseason thinking through what came next before finally putting his thoughts into words.
“As training camp begins, I didn’t want my silence to be misinterpreted,” he wrote, “and as hard as it is to put into words, I wanted to express my gratitude.”
That gratitude started with the city itself, where his oldest son was born and his family built a life over nine seasons.
“I had always heard, ‘If you love New Orleans, New Orleans will love you back,’” Hill wrote. “That could not have been more true.” He said the city “exceeded every expectation” he had of what it would be like to live and play there, crediting the passion and loyalty of Saints fans as “truly one of a kind.”
Hill guided the Rams to the 2008 Class 5A state championship and was the Gatorade Idaho Player of the Year that same year. He signed with BYU after a two-year LDS mission to Australia. Injuries cut short four of his five seasons, but he still finished fourth in school history with 9,744 yards of total offense and set the Cougars’ career rushing record for a quarterback.