Last offseason, Jameis Winston agreed to a two-year contract to stay in New Orleans, but he
might not be around for the last year of the agreement.
According to Pro Football Talk, when questioned about the team’s plans at QB recently, Saints
vice president and deputy general manager Jeff Ireland responded, “We need to find one.”
“The proper person must be involved… You must possess the proper characteristics and
intelligence. In the game’s history, you must typically take one early, “Ireland kept going.
It appears that Ireland was criticizing Winston and reinforcing a negative stereotype about Black
quarterbacks when he said that the team needed to find someone with “the correct intelligence.”
Winston started the first three games of the season, but several lower back fractures he sustained
in Week 1 made it difficult for him to play the following two contests. Journeyman Andy Dalton
was given the start by head coach Dennis Allen in Week 4.
Allen declined to take over as the team’s opening-day starter despite Winston being healthy and
the offense struggling. Dalton, though, began the remaining games of the season.
The outcomes were as unimpressive as one could anticipate from a team captained by Dalton at
this stage of his career. The defense just allowed 32 passing yards in a loss to Carolina in Week 18
—the lowest point.
In two seasons as a starter in New Orleans, Winston has a 6-4 record. With 168 of 276 passes
completed (60.9 percent), he has completed passes for 2,028 yards, 18 touchdowns, and 8
interceptions.
He lost his season to an ACL rupture versus Tampa Bay in 2021. During his first six games as a
starter, he demonstrated enough promise for the organization to re-sign him to a two-year, $28
million contract in the 2022 offseason.
By categorizing him as a post-June 1 cut, the Saints would save $12.8 million.
It’s unfortunate that Winston’s experience in New Orleans didn’t turn out better. He embraced the
city, but his stint as a starter was cut short by injuries and his head coach’s lack of confidence.
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