Taysom Hill was the catalyst the New Orleans Saints needed on Sunday as the utility man rushed for three touchdowns on the way to a 35-14 tromp of the Cleveland Browns.
Although Hill threw an interception and fumbled in the first half, the veteran playmaker rebounded with 138 rushing yards, 50 receiving yards, 18 passing yards, and 42 kickoff return yards along with the three scores. His final touchdown – a 75-yard run – was the longest of his career and the nail in the coffin on the way to the second consecutive win for the Saints (4-7) since parting ways with head coach Dennis Allen.
Taysom Hill simply can’t stop making plays.
FOX pic.twitter.com/HJB01IXc4F
— New Orleans Saints (@Saints) November 17, 2024
Here’s a quick recap of the New Orleans Saints’ win over the Cleveland Browns (2-8).
Scoring summary
The Saints marched down the field in six plays to start the game as Hill, lined up at quarterback, ran through the middle for 10 yards and his first score of the day. On the next drive, Hill threw the interception. Former New Orleans and now-Cleveland quarterback Jameis Winston capitalized on the miscue as he hit Jerry Jeudy on a short slant that went 89 yards all the way into the end zone. The Browns botched the PAT attempt, making the score 7-6 after one quarter of play.
New Orleans countered in the second quarter when quarterback Derek Carr found Marquez Valdes-Scantling on a 71-yard touchdown. Both teams drove the ball down the field before the end of the half, but neither converted, making the halftime score 14-6 in favor of the Saints.
Coming back out of the locker room, New Orleans punted on its first drive before Winston connected with former Ole Miss standout Elijah Moore in the back of the end zone for a 30-yard touchdown. The Browns then tied the game with a two-point conversion. However, this would be their last score of the day.
The Saints exploded in the fourth quarter for 21 unanswered points, including two touchdown runs by Hill. The other score came from Carr to tight end Juwan Johnson.
What the coach said
New Orleans interim head coach Darren Rizzi is now 2-0 as field general, after getting a win over the Atlanta Falcons last Sunday. After the win over Cleveland, Rizzi told reporters that he’s been pleased with the way the locker room has overcome a dismal start to the season.
“We’ve done very well. We hung it in there in all three phases of the game. Now, we’re getting a little bit of the swag back. I love to see the excitement,” Rizzi said. “I’m really proud of our guys and how we’ve performed the last two weeks. We made an emphasis on the line of scrimmage, and we did a good job controlling the line of scrimmage.”
When discussing Hill’s career day – the three rushing touchdowns making the 34-year-old the fifth-oldest player in NFL history to accomplish the feat – Rizzi said the showing just further proves how important Hill is to the roster.
“It’s hard to compare [Hill] with anybody in my 30 years. He’s so valuable to our team,” Rizzi said. “The momentum started to swing, but kudos to Taysom for having some resilience despite two turnovers at halftime. Certainly, we are happy we have him on our team. When he touches the ball, he affects the game and it neutralizes the field.”
Numbers never lie
While Hill dominated the ground game, New Orleans as a team rushed for 214 yards. Running back Alvin Kamara contributed 67 yards on 16 carries.
Quarterback Derek Carr was efficient, completing 21 of 27 passes for 248 yards with two touchdowns. The Saints finished just shy of 500 yards of total offense with 473.
On defense, Mississippi native and linebacker Demario Davis led the Saints with 13 tackles and one for loss. The Saints sacked Cleveland quarterback Jameis Winston three times and held the Browns to a 23% success rate on third down.
Winston ended the day with 395 passing yards with two touchdowns in his return to New Orleans. Browns kicker Dustin Hopkins missed two field goal attempts.
Next up
The New Orleans Saints will get a week of rest before hosting the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday, Dec. 1. Kickoff is scheduled for 3:05 p.m. and will be broadcast on FOX.
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