Family, Positive Outlook Help Taysom Hill Navigate ‘New Season’ Amid COVID-19 Pandemic
May 5, 2020, 6:11 PM
Taysom Hill #7 of the New Orleans Saints scores a touchdown during the third quarter during their game against the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium on December 29, 2019 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images)
(Photo by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – New Orleans Saints do-it-all sensation Taysom Hill just pulled down a $21 million contract as he prepares for this fourth season in the NFL. When he will return to practice like everyone else in the league is anyone’s guess, but as we all are, Hill is adjusting to this new normal.
Earlier this week, Hill participated in a Facebook Live with sister missionaries from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The sister missionaries are serving in Hill’s hometown of Pocatello, Idaho.
A variety of topics were discussed in the 29-minute interview, including how the global COVID-19 pandemic has impacted Hill’s life as a star athlete and soon to be a father for the first time.
How the COVID-19 pandemic is impacting Taysom Hill
“I would say that my schedule is very similar to most people. My wife is pregnant and that has been a little concerning for us. So we’ve just tried to take every precaution that we can to stay safe. So we’ve been doing the quarantine thing. I was able to find a gym that was located in a home that’s been safe and so I work out in the mornings. In the afternoons I spend a lot of time with my wife and we take a lot of walks and we take a lot of drives.”
Despite the challenges the COVID-19 pandemic has created, Hill has adapted and tries to find the best in the situation.
“What I’ve realized is as you go through life, life has different seasons as well. Right now, we’re in the offseason and we just canceled our offseason schedule. My life is out of balance in a great way where I can spend a lot of time with my wife, with my other family members and I can take care of them,” Hill said.
Last month, Saints head coach Sean Payton announced that the offseason program was canceled. Payton told his players to train and be in the best shape of their life when training camp starts in July.
“The thing that we’ve realized is there are seasons in life, and you’ve got make sure you take advantage of whatever season it is. If it happens to be football season for me, I try and go be the best football player I possibly can because I know it’s going to benefit my wife, it’s going to benefit my family,” said Hill. “But when it’s my offseason, I do my best to make sure that I’m the best husband, the best father -future father- that I can be.”
During the interview, the sister missionaries interviewing Hill were impressed with his positivity. The former BYU star replied saying he “married a good woman that wouldn’t let me do anything else.”
Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for sports.ksl.com and host of the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (Saturday from 12-3 pm) on KSL Newsradio. Follow him on Twitter: @Mitch_Harper.
