Camp Battles: Saints QBs

 


It's June and the 2021 NFL Season is rapidly approaching. As it does, I'm going to be looking at some key position battles throughout the league each Monday as a preview of the upcoming NFL Season.

Today, it's another quarterback competition, this time down in New Orleans. Some don't think it will be a competition, as Jameis Winston will be the "obvious" choice to succeed Drew Brees. But I'm not ready to count Taysom Hill out yet, after all it was Hill who started four games when Brees missed time in 2020. Either way, Training Camp and the Pre-Season will tell the tale.

Winston was a former No. 1 overall draft pick. When last we saw him as a full-time starter for the Buccaneers in 2019, he threw for more than 5,000 yards and 30 touchdowns. He also tossed 30 interceptions, and the Buccaneers declined to pick up his contract. They signed Tom Brady and won the Super Bowl. Winston signed with the Saints and hardly saw the field.

Hill, meanwhile, has long been a favorite of Saints' coach Sean Payton and a Jack-of-All-Trades on the field. He's put up some decent performances, and was chosen to fill in when Brees suffered broken ribs in 2020. He started four games, going 3-1 in that stretch. While he was most impressive as a runner, his passing was OK. It seemed like it was an audition to see what it would be like if he was the starter in the post-Brees era. It's tough to say what Payton felt about that audition.

The fact that Hill and Winston were both brought back to compete for the job speaks volumes about how much the Saints liked their options, and how unsure they are about which direction to go. I expect this to be a real competition, and I think Hill is very much in the mix. I also think if Winston is the nominal starter, we'll still see Hill used from time-to-time, including series and packages. That's why I'm not all in on Winston as a solid fantasy option.

I am a fan of Hill, and I'd like to see him get a shot at the job. Only time will tell if that will happen in 2021 with the Saints.

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