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Taysom Hill was almost good enough until he wasn’t.

The Saints quarterback showed tantalizing potential and even appeared to show growth in his ability to process the field, but he undid all of it by turning the ball over too many times, which has long been the biggest issue with his game.***premium***

To be fair, everything needs to get prefaced by pointing out the degree of difficulty any player lining up at quarterback for the Saints is currently facing. The team is without Ryan Ramczyk, Terron Armstead, Alvin Kamara, Michael Thomas, Andrus Peat and Adam Trautman. The quarterback is very much set up for failure, and it is his job and the coaching staff’s job to find a way to overcome all the obstacles.

Not many people could succeed within the current structure. Trevor Siemian certainly could not, and Hill failed in his first crack at it on Thursday night, despite the defense keeping things close enough for it to be a winnable game. Now, it’s possible that both players would have combined to lose the last five games regardless of who was playing alongside them, and some of Hill’s mistakes had nothing to do with the personnel or his various injuries. Still, things certainly would have been easier with everyone on the field.

Hill injured the middle finger on his right hand while throwing a pass to Marquez Callaway with 4:31 remaining in the first quarter. The Cowboys ran a stunt at left tackle James Hurst, and defensive tackle Dorance Armstrong got close enough to Hill to hit his hand on his follow-through. The pass fell incomplete.

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There isn’t a clear before and after from that incident that you can use to divide Hill’s performance. He connected on some passes and made a few quick reads before the injury. He also nearly threw an interception on a dangerous pass he connected with Nick Vannett on (video below) and was also late getting the ball out on a deep crosser to Tre’Quan Smith. A lot of the same things showed up later in the game.

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Hill continued to play well after suffering the injury. His next pass was a 27-yard dart up the seam to Juwan Johnson, which was one of his better plays of the game. The quarterback also made some excellent throws while on the move, which was an issue for him at times during his four starts last year. In fact, the Saints designed a lot of the offense to get Hill moving to disguise the offensive line’s inability to block.

But perhaps the thing the quarterback did best was make quick decisions to run when things were breaking down. When the defense took everything away, the quarterback recognized it and ran. He also recognized the coverage and took off when the defense was playing man and had their backs to him. Hill displayed significant progress in this area from last year, and if it weren’t for the bad moments, it might even be enough to create some excitement around his performance.

Hill had a great moment during the second quarter when he took off with pressure closing in and no one open. The best part of the play was that the quarterback got down and avoided a hit, which he sometimes doesn’t do. If he could do this consistently, it would make Hill a much more dangerous player, especially in this offense.

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One of Hill’s first negative plays was an interception on a pass up the sideline to Kenny Stills. Hill made an aggressive throw against the right coverage and put the ball on the wide receiver’s hands. Unfortunately, Stills was unable to pull the pass in, let it bounce off of his hands and a defensive back made a shoestring interception. The bottom line is that the pass was on point and the wide receiver needs to make the play that was there to make.

However, when watching the play back, it’s hard not to think that Hill could have and probably should have let go of the ball a beat sooner. That would have allowed Stills to make a play on the move and would have made it more difficult for the coverage to peel off the inside player and sit over top of his route.

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Late throws became an issue as the game progressed. Hill left a touchdown on the field by being late on a throw to Smith that came in well behind the receiver and fell incomplete.

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Another one that stood out was an incomplete pass to Smith on a crossing route. The pass was late and a little behind the receiver after not seeing Callaway come open on the left sideline. The thing that stood out most about the play is how Hill shuffled his feet before throwing, which likely caused him to be both late and off the mark when throwing the pass. You can see this action clearly in the video below.

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Hill’s second interception came as a result of his arm getting hit by an interior pass rusher. A little earlier in the game, he allowed a pass to get knocked out of his hand on a play initially ruled a strip-sack. On this one, it looks like Hill takes an extra hitch that allows the blitzer to reach him. Perhaps I’m being overly critical, but in an offense based on timing and precision, the ball needs to come out quicker.

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Hill’s third interception was simply a bad read, and the fourth one was bad luck as a defensive end got off his block and intercepted it.

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Overall, there are things to like about Hill’s performance and things to dislike, which has been the story of his career. You can find ways to explain away the bad, or you can focus on the bad and use it to erase the good. New Orleans can win games with him at quarterback if he can play through his injury and clean some of this stuff up. But it would be tough to win if he continues to turn the ball over and play like he did Thursday.

Like all the other players who have started games this season for the Saints, it would be unfair to judge him off of the first start, especially when playing alongside such a depleted roster. Hill should get another chance to prove himself, and he’ll also need to absolve himself from some of the things he put on film while accentuating the positives.