Let’s add to the offseason intrigue: New Orleans Saints general manager Mickey Loomis briefly spoke with the media at the NFL scouting combine on Thursday, and we learned one really interesting nugget in regards to Jameis Winston, one of the team’s top pending free agents.
“Hopefully we can get something done with one of the guys that is available. Jameis is certainly an option for us, and hopefully we’re an option for him as well,” Loomis told Nola.com’s Luke Johnson, adding that the Saints feel an urgency to solve the quarterback riddle quickly. So interest in running it back one more time is there, from New Orleans — but does Winston feel the same way? That’s going to be a defining question of the offseason for both parties.
Unlike past years, Winston should have plenty of options this offseason. He’s arguably the best passer available with Aaron Rodgers, Russell Wilson, Derek Carr, and even Kirk Cousins looking to stay put. Would a team consider trading for Jimmy Garoppolo or Carson Wentz when they could just wait a little longer and make Winston an offer the Saints can’t match in free agency?
And as Loomis observed, the ball is in Winston’s hands right now. He came to New Orleans to learn from Drew Brees and be coached by Sean Payton. With both of those mentors out of town, how much incentive will Winston have to stick with the Saints if he gets better offers from other teams? Sure, he knows the system, but there could be more money available elsewhere — and more help.
We still haven’t seen Winston start a game with Michael Thomas and Alvin Kamara both at his side. They’re just as hypothetical as him teaming up with, say, Chase Claypool and Najee Harris on the Pittsburgh Steelers. Or Michael Pittman and Jonathan Taylor with the Indianapolis Colts. It isn’t a given that Winston will want to come back to New Orleans. Let’s see how it plays out.
