Jameis Winston makes a strong case for Saints QB1 job vs. Jaguars

Former number one overall pick Jameis Winston put on a show for the New Orleans Saints against the Jaguars, making his case for the QB1 spot.

The New Orleans Saints should be very close to naming a starting quarterback for year one of the post-Drew Brees era. At this point, it’s hilarious to think that quarterback could be anyone other than Jameis Winston.

Even though Taysom Hill is the $140 million man, Jameis Winston is just clearly the superior starting quarterback option. The Saints went 3-1 in Hill’s starts last season and even though he completed over 72 percent of his passes, he didn’t consistently pass the eye test when it comes to being a long-term starting quarterback option.

With nine total touchdowns as a runner and receiver last year besides his four passing TDs, Hill will still undoubtedly have a role in Sean Payton’s offense, but Winston needs to be the starting quarterback taking the lion’s share of snaps.

It’s important to not overreact to a single preseason game, but Jameis Winston was excellent for the Saints against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Monday Night Football.

He completed 9-of-10 passes for 123 yards and two touchdowns.

Hill completed 11-of-20 passes for 138 yards and a touchdown, to be fair.

Winston was out there dropping dimes and finding some chemistry with Marquez Callaway.

Winston is one of just a handful of players in league history to throw for 5,000 yards in a season. It didn’t work out for him in Tampa Bay, but there’s no rule against 27-year-old former number one picks who were let go by their original team finding success elsewhere.

What was really fascinating about the New Orleans Saints in 2020 was the fact that they did not put Winston in when Drew Brees was out injured last season and really jumpstart this thing.

He threw just 11 passes in his first season with the Saints, but Sean Payton has been playing the long game with Winston and it could pay off this season.

The Saints took on a lot of turnover in the 2021 offseason, but frankly, it wasn’t nearly as much as I and many others anticipated based on their lack of salary cap space. Even given their lack of resources to really make substantial additions to the team in 2021, the Saints kept most of their really strong roster intact and Winston will have a great chance to succeed if he’s named the starter.

And at this point, that decision for Sean Payton should be a no-brainer.

There is an element that Taysom Hill certainly brings as a skill player that the Saints have made work where other teams really haven’t. Even with that being the case, Winston is just a far better pocket passer who has plenty of experience and could really resurrect his career with this roster.