Sean Payton Says Saints Want To Re-Sign QB Jameis Winston ‘Sooner Than Later’

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton voiced that he’d like to re-sign upcoming free agent quarterback Jameis Winston “sooner than later.”

Payton discussed the Saints’ future at quarterback during a couple of media appearances amid Super Bowl week.

“Jameis Winston, we know. We had a year with him. He was fantastic as a leader. He’s got tremendous arm talent. He’s a young prospect that we like a lot,” Payton told ESPN. “When you have a player for a season, he’s kind of giving you a chance to see what he’s about, and there’s a little bit of an audition there. But the same audition takes place for us. He’s getting a chance to see, ‘Hey, this is how they do it here. Does this fit me? Does this head coach, this position coach? Is this a place I feel comfortable playing?'”

Drew Brees Retiring?

According to Fox Sports’ Jay Glazer, Saints starting quarterback Drew Brees played his last NFL game during the New Orleans’ NFC Divisional Round loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Today will be Drew Brees' last game in the Superdome. #NFLPlayoffs #DrewBrees #NewOrleans #Brees #TBvsNO pic.twitter.com/9QfbtIg5RJ

— Jay Glazer (@JayGlazer) January 17, 2021

Payton told CBS Sports’ Pick Six Podcast that he expects Brees to make an announcement on if he is retiring “in the next week or two.”

"I think [an announcement] is coming in the next week or two."@SeanPayton gave @WillBrinson the latest on Drew Brees' future with the Saints. pic.twitter.com/qLPw1Fd6Wb

— Pick Six Podcast (@picksixpod) February 3, 2021

Jameis Winston and Taysom Hill

The Saints’ other quarterback and Brees’ primary backup in 2020 was former BYU star Taysom Hill.

Hill played in 17 games for the Saints last season, including four starts at quarterback during the regular season.

As the starting quarterback, Hill led New Orleans to a 3-1 record.

He threw for 928 yards, four touchdowns, and two interceptions with a 72.7 completion rate.

Taysom Time ⏰ #LocalsInTheNFL #YACPodcast #Saints #NFL #BYU #GoCougs #BYUFOOTBALL @kslsports pic.twitter.com/46PPMfFWmf

— Kyle Ireland 😷 (@kyleireland) December 14, 2020

In addition to passing, Hill had 87 carries for 457 yards and eight touchdowns.

By comparison, Winston finished the year with 7/11 passing for 75 yards in four games.

Before joining the Saints, the former No. 1 overall pick was the starting quarterback for the Buccaneers, During his five seasons in Tampa Bay, Winston threw for 19,737 yards, 121 touchdowns, and 88 interceptions. Combined with fumbles, he had 111 total turnovers.

On Wednesday, February 3, Payton said the Saints have a “pretty good vision” for both Winston and Hill.

“A lot of times you want to hold your cards closer to the vest,” Payton told Good Morning Football. “Him along with Taysom Hill. We’ve said it all along. We’re gonna develop and coach those guys and Jameis is one of those guys that we have a big interest in.”

Prior to the 2020 season, Winston signed a $1.1 million, one-year deal with the Saints while the team re-signed Hill to a multi-year deal worth $21 million.