Jameis Winston learned consistency from Drew Brees

Former FSU standout quarterback Jameis Winston is trying to find a fresh start in New Orleans with the retirement of future Hall of Famer Drew Brees.

Winston finds himself in an open quarterback competition with Taysom Hill, and both players were in New Orleans last season Hill received the bulk of the snaps when Brees went down with an injury in 2020.

However, Winston is the more experienced player by far and will look to apply what he learned from Drew Brees to help him win the starting job.

Jameis Winston spoke with Michael Vick earlier this year and talked about how Drew Brees changed things for him.

"“It was his routine off the field. He was doing the same thing every single day. Despite all the injuries, he was doing the same thing every single day.That’s where consistency starts.I think as a younger me, I was so infatuated with the big play…having sparks, having flashes, but it’s about play, after play, after play, after play, after play,[for Drew] it’s not about special plays, it’s about the right play.” Winston said."

FSU fans are all too familiar with Winston’s flair for the big play. I’d wager his final year as a starter in Tampa Bay was similar to his final year at FSU in 2014. There was a whole lot of good, but a whole lot of bad with turnovers.

That’s where the consistency comes into play. Jameis Winston is an incredibly smart guy on the football field, going back to running Jimbo Fisher’s pro-style offense as a redshirt freshman. That season is still the most prolific offense in college football history(LSU needed an extra game to score three more points in a season).

Can Winston avoid the turnovers and find the check downs instead of forcing the ball downfield? Winston wasn’t the only problem in Tampa Bay. The offensive line was terrible, and they had no running, not to mention the offense relied a lot on chunking the ball vertically downfield.

New Orleans relied on getting the ball out of Brees’s hand quickly while taking their shots downfield when they presented themselves. They also used their running backs in the passing game, with Alvin Kamara having over 80 receptions in all four seasons in the NFL.

New Orleans represents an upgrade over what Tampa Bay had when Winston was the starter. He’ll have a chance to revive his career if he can win the starting job, and it looks like he’s up for the challenge with the work he put in this offseason.