First things first: When I say I love Jameis Winston’s signing with the New York Giants, I am saying that I love it in its current context. It’s almost like saying I love Arby’s when I’m on the verge of starvation (and am in possession of enough Pepto Bismol to handle the fallout).
It’s very clearly YOLO time in East Rutherford, after the Giants were edged out of the Matthew Stafford sweepstakes, seem to be a distant runner-up for Aaron Rodgers and are staring down the near certainty that Cam Ward will be drafted No. 1 by the Tennessee Titans. Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll are in a perilous enough position that there needed to be a press conference justifying the two remaining in their current jobs. The confidence in the team’s ability to make a prescient roster decision, after the (still justified, in my opinion) separation from Saquon Barkley, are at near all-time lows.
And so, as one tends to do in similar situations, the Giants signed Winston to a two-year deal consistent financially with that of a middle-pack backup quarterback. However, this has the potential to not be as bleak as many are imagining—or at the very least, it could make sense tucked inside a larger picture. Here are a few reasons why:
• First, one has to consider the social and emotional aspect. Winston has skillfully rebranded himself as some hybrid of Michael Scott and Joel Osteen. Back when the New England Patriots were planning their lives after Tom Brady, one of the first moves the team made was to sign Cam Newton, a charismatic, well-known quarterback who could simply eat a lot of the air out of a room. Call it what you want: a respectable sideshow, a distraction or a bit of P.T. Barnum–era carnival barking. Of late, the Giants have endured a quickly sinking ship that was only momentarily made more cheerful by the emergence of capable quarterback play from a very Italian local who happened to live with his parents.
While Winston’s schtick is clearly not for everyone, I view the intent similar to that of Newton. And Winston has played this role artfully in the past. He was brought in to ease the transition of the post–Drew Brees New Orleans Saints and as a stand-in to redirect Cleveland Browns fans (if only momentarily) from the utter horror that has become the Deshaun Watson trade. He understands his role as a kind supercharged clubhouse guy.
• Next is the potential flexibility his signing provides, as well as an incentive to draft a certain way. The current thought is that the Giants will add more veteran competition and may decline to reach—my thought and word choice—for Shedeur Sanders with the No. 3 pick. It would seem like common sense to assume that Ward will go to the Titans and the Browns, seeking to replicate just about the only solid personnel decision the franchise has made since the early 1990s, will select a skilled pass rusher who’ll ease the burden on Myles Garrett and one day serve as Garrett’s heir apparent.
That leaves the Giants and Travis Hunter, a player so skilled at two of the team’s biggest positions of need—defensive back and wide receiver—that he won the Heisman Trophy, Bednarik Award and Biletnikoff Award (despite, as colleague Albert Breer noted, not really practicing all that much as a wide receiver). The Giants and Hunter seem like a match made in heaven, with New York one of the few teams that could actually, legitimately explore Hunter’s ability to play on both offense and defense.
What makes Hunter interesting as an offensive player relative to Winston is that he would seem to be an ideal stylistic complement to Malik Nabers and offer Winston a deep ball target. Hunter is a contested catch marvel, with one statistical service grading him almost 10% better than the next-best wide receiver of a 10-year sample size (Drake London). Hunter also played on a team quarterbacked by Sanders, who, while incredibly accurate, was not known for his arm strength. Some of Hunter’s most highlight-worthy plays have come on passes that, at least to me, looked to lack some air underneath them.
Throwing in the possibility that the other veteran quarterback the Giants are possibly entertaining is Russell Wilson, who had the top EPA per throw on balls chucked 20 or more yards downfield, we now have an offense that, at the very least, can start to resemble a unit with an identity. Winston, similar to Wilson, was fourth among all quarterbacks since 2000 in explosive pass percentage. When he starts a notable chunk of games in a season, he is consistently among the top quarterbacks in terms of air yards to the sticks, which is a metric calculating how often (and how far beyond) the first down marker a quarterback is throwing.
• Ultimately, this is why I love the move and what it possibly represents (counterbalancing Winston with someone like Wilson and drafting Travis Hunter at No. 3). Daboll and Schoen know they are operating with their backs against the wall. The typical organizational route would be to try to extend the timeline by forcing themselves to fall in love with a quarterback who is draftable right now and reset the hope cycle.
Instead, the Giants are possibly building the polar opposite of the offense they enjoyed while Daniel Jones was the starting quarterback. Unlike Winston, Jones was one of the lowest-ranked quarterbacks in terms of air yards to the sticks. This offense, while also simultaneously ailing from horrendous offensive line play and a rash of injuries, was seldom known for pushing the ball downfield, and Jones, at the height of his yips, was either racked by indecision or not presented with any options to do so effectively.
Where Jones lacked confidence, Winston has a seemingly endless font, or at the very least, has successfully deleted the part of his brain that fears consequence or public opinion.
Winston comes with plenty of headaches (specifically addressing the on-field). Again, I hope that when I urge you to take this with a grain of salt, you find one the size of the hope diamond. He is inconsistent, takes sacks on third down at an astronomical rate, and while he’s actually got a decent EPA per rush, he rarely leaves the pocket or weaponizes his mobility.
As frustrated as Daboll may have been with Jones not pulling the trigger, Winston may provide equal headaches with an increase in turnover-worthy throws.
Still, he represents what side I believe the Giants are on when asking themselves how they will attack what would otherwise be considered a meaningless, lame-duck season in franchise history. Winston doesn’t preclude the Giants from entertaining a possibly richer 2026 quarterback class or from taking a flier on a quarterback such as Jaxson Dart or Jalen Milroe later in the draft (if Dart makes it into the second round). Like Winston has proven capable of facilitating situations that receivers would want to be part of, as he did a year ago with Jerry Jeudy.
The NFL is full of surrender punts, either schematically or organizationally. When the end is near, it seems like most coaches, owners and general managers regress to some Jason Garrett–like middle ground of perceived common sense. They do what can justify their continued existence elsewhere.
The Giants deserve credit for chucking it toward the end zone. As is true with every Winson pass, that’s where the ball is headed. Where it actually lands? No one knows.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Giants Signing Jameis Winston Is Like Chucking One Toward the End Zone.
