Jameis Winston vs. Taysom Hill: Who is winning the Saints’ QB battle to replace Drew Brees?

For 15 years, the Saints rarely had to worry about their starting quarterback. Drew Brees became their starter after signing as a free agent during the 2006 NFL offseason and held that post until his retirement following the 2020 season.

Brees missed just 12 games during his 15 years with the Saints. Nine of them came in the last two seasons, but even still, when Brees was healthy, there was no doubt he was their starting quarterback.

Now, in 2021, the Saints may have the most unsettled quarterback battle in the NFL as Jameis Winston and Taysom Hill fight for the starting job. And Sean Payton seems content to let them do that.

So far during training camp, Payton has been impressed with both quarterbacks.

“Both of these guys are working their tail off, they’re both well-respected by their teammates, they’re really, really good leaders,” Payton told ESPN’s Dan Graziano. “And that’s a good thing.”

Payton has three preseason games with which to evaluate Winston and Hill. What has he said about them so far? Here’s everything to know about the Saints’ quarterback battle as New Orleans draws closer to dubbing its successor to Brees.

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What Sean Payton has said about Jameis Winston

Winston didn’t start for the Saints when Brees went down last year. Hill was given that honor instead. But even after that decision, Payton was adamant that he would’ve been comfortable starting Winston.

“Jameis definitely is a starter,” Payton said, per Saints Wire. “He’s performed exceptionally well considering the amount of time we’ve had, or haven’t had, since we signed him.”

He added that the decision to leave Winston on the bench was something he thought about each game.

“I and we as an organization love what we have seen from Jameis,” Payton said, “and that constantly weighs in your mind relative to each game.”

Winston was a free agent during the 2021 offseason but the Saints were able to re-sign him after Payton made it clear that New Orleans wanted him back.

“A lot of times you want to hold your cards closer to the vest [with a] free agent,” Payton said, per ESPN’s Mike Triplett. “But 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.”

Payton hasn’t said much about Winston during training camp. He has spoken about him in conjunction with Hill, but he hasn’t commented specifically on Winston’s performance. That said, Saints offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael called him a “quick study” and noted how Winston’s work self-scouting has helped him to improve.

“Every year I get a chance to do a self-scout of myself. But this year I had so many people to scout,” Winston said. “I mean, we had Tom Brady playing in an offense that I played in the year before. We had Matt Ryan playing in an offense with (former Bucs coach) Dirk Koetter in Atlanta. We had Drew Brees playing in this offense. And then we had Teddy (Bridgewater) playing in (a version of) Sean’s offense in Carolina.

“I was able to watch four great quarterbacks execute in those systems. So I was able to take some things from them. I was able to take some things that I learned from my experience in those offenses, and obviously this newer offense with Sean. . . . So it was an amazing year for me in terms of just growth of learning football overall.”

Perhaps Payton is staying mum on Winston to keep his quarterback choice shrouded in mystery. That said, his comments on Hill have been more plentiful.

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What Sean Payton has said about Taysom Hill

The world was first exposed to Payton’s love affair with Hill in March 2020. Payton mentioned that the Saints viewed Hill as a future starter with Drew Brees entering what appeared to be the final season of his career.

“I think Taysom sees himself as being a starting quarterback in this league and we do too,” Payton said on ESPN’s “Get Up.”

That said, it shouldn’t have been too much of a surprise when Payton elected to start Hill for four games during the 2020 season with Brees sidelined. Hill led the Saints to a 3-1 record as a starter and averaged 208.5 passing yards and a pass TD per game. He added 52.3 rushing yards and a rush TD per game as well.

Why did Payton decide to start Hill over Winston at that time?

“My thinking was a commitment that I had made to Taysom in the offseason,” Payton said.

This year, there has been no such commitment from Payton. Still, Payton has been impressed with Hill during camp. Does he believe that Hill has improved year to year?

“Yes. Absolutely,” Payton said after Saints practice Aug. 11. “He’s getting a lot more work at it now.”

Payton touted the extra reps at quarterback as a reason for Hill’s progression. In previous years, the team had given him reps at quarterback and tight end, among other spots, so Payton believes the extra work has led to his “gradual improvement.”

“He’s getting through his progressions quicker,” Payton said. “I think the reps in this offense are what he needs. I think both [Hill and Jameis Winston] have gotten the ball down the field effectively at times. Overall, the in and out of the huddle, going through the progression from the primary to secondary targets, you’re seeing a gradual improvement with [Hill] in those areas.”

Payton seems impressed with Hill, but that doesn’t mean Hill leads the starting quarterback battle. More likely, Payton is going to be watching the Saints’ preseason games closely as he looks for one passer to earn the edge.

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Who started the Saints’ first preseason game?

Taysom Hill started the Saints’ first preseason game. He began the game well and marched the Saints down the field, completing 4 of 5 passes for 62 yards. That included a 23-yard strike to Marquez Callaway on the move.

The Saints didn’t score because of a Latavius Murray fumble, but Hill had the Saints in scoring range, inside the 10-yard line.

His next two drives didn’t go nearly as well. He threw an ugly interception on fourth down that was well out of the reach of a wide-open Ty Montgomery.  

The following drive, Hill led the Saints to 8 yards on nine plays. He finished his night going 8 of 12 for 81 yards and an interception. He didn’t attempt a run.

Winston came in after Hill and performed similarly. He went 7 of 12 for 96 yards and a touchdown. He threw an interception as well. His best throw was a 33-yard gain to Juwan Johnson.

After the game, Payton declined to comment on the quarterback battle, citing the Saints’ poor overall performance as part of the issue.

“I’m not making any comparisons with the quarterbacks right now,” Payton said. “It doesn’t matter who really [played better] with six turnovers, right?”

Who will start the Saints’ second preseason game?

Jameis Winston will start for the Saints on Monday night against the Jaguars. New Orleans coach Sean Payton confirmed the assignment on Aug. 20. Winston is starting as part of a planned rotation with he and Taysom Hill.

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