The New Orleans Saints entered the 2022 offseason without much wiggle room when it came to changing the roster. They were about $74 million over the salary cap, limiting the moves that they could make.
It led to some good players, such as Terron Armstead and Marcus Williams, departing in free agency. New Orleans was also unable to get into the bidding wars for some quarterbacks around the league that were available because of their cap situation.
Pressed for resources, the Saints re-signed Jameis Winston and brought in Andy Dalton to be his backup. With Taysom Hill moving to tight end in a joker role, the team needed another signal-caller with Trevor Siemian signing with the Bears, essentially swapping spots with Dalton.
While some fans would have liked to see New Orleans land someone such as Russell Wilson or Deshaun Watson, re-signing Winston isn’t the worst outcome. He was having a solid season in 2021 before a knee injury suffered in a Week 8 matchup with his former team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, cut his season short.
One person that believes in Watson is former Saints quarterback, Drew Brees. His retirement last season is what opened the door for Winston to take over the starting job. Brees feels the situation in New Orleans is one that can breed success for the former No. 1 overall pick.
“I think it’s set up for success with Jameis,” Brees said, via Jeff Duncan of the Times-Picayune. “I think you continue to build pieces around him that will help him be successful. I think the defensive side of the ball has incredible leadership and has been playing at a really high level for the last few years.”
Winston threw for 1,170 yards, 14 touchdowns and only three interceptions before his knee injury. His ball security was much improved from his time with the Buccaneers, which was the biggest issue plaguing him.
He was also finding more success as a runner than he had previously in his career. Winston was well on his way to setting career highs across the board on the ground, rushing 32 times for 166 yards and one touchdown. His previous career highs were 59 rushes in 2019 and 281 yards in 2018.
This season, Winston should also have Michael Thomas to throw the ball to. Thomas had record-setting performances in 2018 and 2019 before injuries plagued him in 2020 and caused him to miss the entire 2021 campaign. Having him back on the field will help the passing game a ton, pushing Marquez Callaway, Deonte Harris and Tre’Quan Smith into complementary roles behind him on the depth chart instead of featured ones they struggled to make a big impact in last season.
