It’s been ten days since free agency began in the NFL, but one of the best quarterbacks available remains unsigned, leading many fans and pundits to ask the question: who will sign Jameis Winston? Winston is coming off a play-making but turnover-prone season, completing 380-of-626 passes (60.7 completion percentage) for 5,109 passing yards (8.2 yards per attempt), 33 touchdowns, and 30 interceptions. He also added 250 rushing yards on 59 attempts (4.2 yards per attempt) and one touchdown.
Winston ranked first in passing yards, second in passing touchdowns, and fifth in yards per attempt. He also finished last in interceptions and second-last in sacks (47 sacks taken). This prompted the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to replace him with Tom Brady as starting quarterback. With a boom-or-bust playing style, Winston is one of the most polarizing players in the NFL. Still only 26 years old, his best football could be ahead of him. Where would he fit in 2020?
Where Will Jameis Winston Land?
Quarterback Market
The current quarterback market is working against Winston right now. Former NFL MVP Cam Newton, a more proven passer, has been released by the Carolina Panthers, so Winston is the second-best quarterback available in free agency. There are also three quarterbacks projected to be drafted in the Top-10 in the 2020 NFL Draft: Joe Burrow, Tua Tagovailoa, and Justin Herbert. This scenario really limits Winston’s starting opportunities. Let’s first look around the league at teams with a hole at starting quarterback and determine a likely fit.
New England Patriots: The Pats lost Brady to the Bucs, so they have a massive hole at quarterback. But the team seems to be content with entering the 2020 season with former 2019 fourth-round pick Jarrett Stidham as their starter. Pro-Bowl safety Devin McCourty heaped glowing praise on the sophomore signal-caller, stating that some of the defense’s best practice weeks came when Stidham picked them apart. This notion was supported by the signing of former backup quarterback Brian Hoyer, who is familiar with the offensive scheme and capable of mentoring Stidham. We can safely cross the Patriots off the list.
Los Angeles Chargers: Long-time starter Philip Rivers signed with the Indianapolis Colts, but the team is happy with Tyrod Taylor as their potential starter. Head coach Anthony Lynn has praised Taylor’s ability to protect the football, stating that he will likely have the first crack at the starting gig in 2020. The Chargers also hold the sixth pick in the NFL Draft, so they will be well-positioned to select one of the highly-touted quarterback prospects available. There’s a good chance that we could see Tagovailoa or Herbert wearing powder blue, so we can take forget about Winston in LA.
Miami Dolphins: The Dolphins already have a quarterback with a similar boom-or-bust skillset in veteran Ryan Fitzpatrick. They also have the fifth pick in the draft, making them a potential destination for Tagovailoa or Herbert. Winston is not a good fit in Miami, so we can cross them off the list as well.
Jacksonville Jaguars: The Jaguars would allow Winston to remain in Florida, a state he has been familiar with for the past decade as a Buccaneer and Florida State Seminole. They also have a potential path to playing time, with only former 2019 sixth-round pick Gardner Minshew in his way. However, Minshew had a solid rookie season and the team appears prepared to move forward with him as their starter. They also just traded Nick Foles to the Chicago Bears, which left behind $18.75 million in dead cap space. We can forget about Winston in Jacksonville.
If we look at other potential options, we also see that there is no room for Winston. The Cincinnati Bengals are a lock to select Burrow in the draft. The Washington Redskins appear to be content with rolling with Dwayne Haskins, with former Carolina Panther Kyle Allen serving as backup. The Oakland Raiders signed Marcus Mariota to compete with Derek Carr, while the Bears traded for Foles to push Mitchell Trubisky. The Tennessee Titans paid a hefty price to re-sign Ryan Tannehill, while the Denver Broncos are rolling with Drew Lock. The rest of the teams either have a franchise quarterback or have their current starter signed at a premium price or drafted at a high pick.
This almost exhausts all options for Jameis Winston, leaving only one contender for his services.
The Ideal Fit
Pittsburgh Steelers: This looks like Winston’s next destination. Long-time starter Ben Roethlisberger is entering his age-38 season, coming off a serious elbow injury that limited him to only two games. Big Ben’s injury catapulted a potential contending season for the Steelers, as backups Mason Rudolph and Devlin Hodges could not get the job done. This is a team with a dominant defense and strong weapons on offense like JuJu Smith-Schuster and James Conner. They are also without a first-round draft pick, trading it away to the Dolphins for star defensive back Minkah Fitzpatrick.
The Steelers badly need to add depth behind Roethlisberger, because they can’t afford to throw away another season if he were to miss any time. Big Ben is also near the end of his career; in fact, 2020 could wind up as his final season in the NFL, providing a clear path to playing time for Winston. There are also reports that Bucs’ head coach Bruce Arians called two teams to advocate for Winston as a player, calling him “one of the hardest workers” in the NFL.
Arians has ties to the Steelers’ organization, having worked as wide receivers coach and offensive coordinator from 2004-2011. There’s a definite chance that the Steelers were one of the teams that he contacted. Head coach Mike Tomlin, one of only three black head coaches in the NFL, would be the perfect new mentor for a polarizing young black quarterback like Winston. This is an ideal fit for player, coach, and franchise – Jameis Winston will sign with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
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