Saints re-signing Jameis Winston to 2-year deal

After flirting with a trade for Deshaun Watson, the Saints’ fall-back plan has reportedly come into place.

New Orleans is re-signing Jameis Winston to a 2-year contract, according to NFL Network’s Tom Pellissero.

The team confirmed the deal Tuesday morning (see below). It’s a heavily incentive-laden contract at $28 million total but New Orleans can back out of it in March next year at a cost of just over $15 million total.

Winston started the first seven games of 2021 before season-ending ACL surgery, completing 59 percent of his passes for 1,170 yards, 14 touchdowns and three interceptions.

SAINTS RELEASE:
The New Orleans Saints announced that they have agreed to terms on a two-year contract with QB Jameis Winston. The announcement was made by Saints Executive Vice President/General Manager Mickey Loomis.

Winston started the first seven games of the 2021 season and was voted by his teammates as a captain, helping guide the Saints to a 5-2 record as a starter prior to suffering a season-ending knee injury in Week Eight. He completed 95-of-161 passes for 1,170 yards, 14 touchdowns, three interceptions and a 102.8 passer rating, ranked first in the NFL at the time of his injury in touchdown percentage (8.7). Winston originally signed with New Orleans in 2020 as an unrestricted free agent.

Originally selected with the first overall pick in the 2015 NFL Draft by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers out of Florida State University, Winston, 6-4, 231, spent his first five seasons with the Buccaneers prior to signing with New Orleans in 2020 as an unrestricted free agent. The Bessemer, Al. native has appeared in 83 career regular season games with 77 starts, completing 1,665-of-2,720 passes (61.2%) for 20,982 yards with 135 touchdown passes, 91 interceptions and an 87.8 passer rating, while adding 1,204 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns and being named to the Pro Bowl in 2015 following his rookie season.

From 2015-19, Winston set numerous Buccaneers passing records including both the franchise’s career passing yards mark, which still stands and single-season marks in passing yards and touchdown passes at the time. In his final season in Tampa Bay in 2019, he posted career-highs in passing yards (5,109), touchdown passes (33), completions (380), and yards-per-attempt (8.2). During a two-game stretch in wins in Weeks 14 and 15, Winston tossed for 456 and 458 yards, becoming the only player in National Football League history to pass for 450 yards in consecutive contests. Winston’s NFL-best 5,109 passing yards is the eighth-highest total in league record books, as he is one of only nine signal-callers to reach 5,000 yards passing.

Prior to being the first pick in the 2015 NFL Draft, Winston turned in a historic career at Florida State filled with numerous individual and team accolades. In his two seasons as a starter in Tallahassee, Winston posted a 27-1 record as a starter, became only the second freshman to win the Heisman Trophy in 2013 and led the Seminoles to back-to-back 13-0 regular seasons as well as a victory over Auburn in the 2014 BCS National Championship where he was named the game’s Offensive Most Valuable Player. Winston finished his college career with 7,964 passing yards, 65 touchdown passes and a 163.3 passer rating.

Winston has regularly donated his time and money to supporting important causes in the New Orleans, Tampa, Tallahassee and Birmingham communities through his Dream Forever Foundation. He most recently stepped up in 2021 following the devastation of Hurricane Ida, donating $50,000 to United Way of Southeast Louisiana, collaborated to raise funds for the World Central Kitchen to provide meals to those in need, as well as supplying bottled water, drinks, snack and construction supplies to local first responders. Winston also collaborated with teammate Cameron Jordan to donate $1,000 per team touchdown (43 touchdowns) and $1,000 per team sack (46 sack) deserving local nonprofits involved in hurricane relief and rebuilding.