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Injuries are the main storyline of the "Thursday Night Football" game between the New Orleans Saints and the Dallas Cowboys, and these issues have also affected the game itself. For the first time this season, Tyson Hill was recognized by the quarterback because Sean Payton chose to use his Swiss Army knife to work at the center position in the opening game of Week 13. 

In the first three games, neither team could score, but Hill was very efficient, completing 5 of his first 8 pass attempts for 29 yards. However, it was on the eighth pitch that Hill stuck his bowler's middle finger on an incomplete pass for receiver Marquez Callaway. 

Later replays showed that Hill's hand hit the arm of Dallas defensive end Dolans Armstrong in the third and seventh attempts. With the punt team coming out, Hill will retreat to the sidelines and be evaluated in the blue medical tent. 

Taysom Hill's hand is injured! #Saints pic.twitter.com/xtKh53rq34

He will eventually show up and begin to warm up, but with a splint between his middle finger. Hill did not miss an offensive opportunity due to injury, but this obviously haunted his next game. His accuracy seemed to be an issue throughout the game, and the Saints worked hard to push the ball off the field, especially after Dallas established a lead, they tried to catch up. 

"It did a great job," Hill said of his fingers after the game. "We will evaluate it and make a plan tomorrow."

After the injury, Hill completed 14 of 33 passes (42.4%), two touchdowns and 4 interceptions. Three of the picks appeared in the fourth quarter, including one pick six. Hill pointed out that the splint "needs a little time to get used to" because it naturally affects the way the ball falls from the pitcher. 

"I wouldn't be eager to draw any conclusions without seeing the video tape or anything, but I think we did very well on some things tonight, and then we did very badly on some things," Xi Er said of his overall performance. "Obviously, when you turn the ball four times, it is difficult to win a game. As long as you look at the statistics and see what you have done, this is obviously something that makes you think. It's disappointing."

Before the finger injury, Hill-who also dealt with a foot injury in this game-only rushed for 3 yards. The Saints began to release Hill's part of the game more in the second half, as he ended the game with a game-high 101 yards, 9.2 yards per offense. He stated after the game that his foot pain was "controllable" and did not limit his typical ability in the game.

Of course, all this is happening, because New Orleans is still trying to find its own center position in the first season of the post-Drew Briss era. Hill has always been a candidate for the baton, but the main sticking point that prevented him from being fully promoted to QB1 was his lack of development as a pure passer. Although his throwing hand injury game may not be the best barometer to evaluate this, there is not enough flash to stop the Saints from continuing to look for their next quarterback in the coming weeks and months.  

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