In Week 3, the New Orleans Saints will face the Philadelphia Eagles. Will Saints tight end Taysom Hill play today as he battles a chest injury? Here’s the latest on New Orleans’ TE.
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Taysom Hill’s Status for Week 3 vs. Eagles
Hill suffered a chest injury during the Saints’ win over the Dallas Cowboys, and it was serious enough to require a hospital trip.
All reports suggested that the injury is nothing serious, and he got in two limited practices this week, so it seemed like Hill was trending toward playing.
However, on Saturday, the Saints downgraded Hill from questionable to doubtful for this contest against the Eagles.
Given that designation, it seems unlikely that Hill will suit up in Week 3.
Who Will Step Up in Hill’s Absence?
If Hill is sidelined, the Saints will lean on tight ends Foster Moreau and Juwan Johnson. From a fantasy standpoint, this would put managers in a difficult position since Moreau and Johnson have both scored this season.
Perhaps the biggest beneficiaries of Hill’s absence would be the Saints’ other offensive weapons: Alvin Kamara, Chris Olave, and Rashid Shaheed. Here’s Pro Football Network’s Fantasy Expert Kyle Soppe’s fantasy outlook for each of these playmakers.
Alvin Kamara Fantasy Outlook
Fantasy’s top running back through two weeks (13.5 points ahead of the field) has picked up yardage on an insane 95% of his rushing attempts this season, a nice trend to take into a contest against the worst run defense in terms of yards per carry allowed before contact (118% above league average).
I was worried about Kamara wearing down and a lack of explosive play potential. Those concerns are still rattling around in the back of my head (his last 20+ yard rush came in Week 18 of 2022), but when it comes to right now, you’re counting on him to continue to carry your squad.
Chris Olave Fantasy Outlook
If you had told me that the Saints would be chasing historic offensive efficiency marks after a 2-0 start, I would have bet the house on Olave’s Year 3 breakout being well underway.
Instead, we have more questions than answers. His aDOT is down 22.3% from a season ago — a trend I’d accept if he was excelling out of the slot and getting those easy button targets. But he’s not … not at all.
In 2023, Olave ran 38% of his routes out of the slot and, despite a decline in depth of target, that rate has tanked to 10.2% through two games this season. The Week 2 beatdown of the Cowboys was a step in the right direction, but there is no denying that this is a rough start for Olave if we are to assume that this is the peak of New Orleans’ offensive powers (they have 91 points and he has just 92 receiving yards).
We are seeing a Rashid Shaheed-like receiver breakout in Detroit with Jameson Williams similarly stretching the field. It took a week, but Amon-Ra St. Brown’s value rebounded from a one-week struggle and is now exactly where I had it entering the season. Will that be the case for Olave? Though Shaheed’s skill set is more similar to his than St. Brown’s is to Williams’, I’m holding firm with Olave as a lineup lock.
Producing under 60 yards in five of six games during an early run last season, we’ve seen dry spells in this profile before; I’m hoping that when Olave comes out of this minor funk, he does so in a big way.
Rashid Shaheed Fantasy Outlook
Is there a player more feared down the field right now? Tyreek Hill typically holds that role, but with Tua Tagovailoa sidelined, the fear he strikes in the hearts of defenses takes a hit. Ja’Marr Chase and DK Metcalf have seen their depth of target drop in a major way, likely removing them from this equation.
Shaheed’s rankings:
- Fantasy Points: WR9
- Expected Fantasy Points: WR52
I really don’t care who you view as the most feared vertical threat. The point is that Shaheed is on the list with Derek Carr playing the way he is right now. It was great to see that the Saints fed him three rush attempts last week—they clearly value his skill set and are looking to maximize what he does well in an offense that is clicking on all cylinders.
There is one player that I think is feared on those deep passes more, and it’s Jameson Williams. While both speedsters hold similar skill sets, I have Williams just inside of my top 20 at the position, while Shaheed sits just outside of my top 30. It’s a numbers game – neither of these receivers profile as an elite target earner, so I’m going to lean on the player who plays alongside a WR1 that mirrors less what he does.
Olave could swallow up Shaheed’s targets in short order while I view Williams’ vertical role as more stable next to Amon-Ra St. Brown. I don’t think that necessarily happens, but that risk is why I have these two breakout players separated by 10-ish spots in my Week 3 rankings.