Saints Draft Strategy Will Reveal Their Commitment to Jameis Winston

The New Orleans Saints pulled off a pre-draft surprise when they pulled off a major trade with the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday. New Orleans traded their first round choice, #18 overall, along with a third rounder, seventh rounder, a 2023 first-round pick and 2024 second-rounder. In return, the Saints got the 16th and 19th overall selections of the first-round back from the Eagles.

New Orleans now has three selections in the top 50 and four picks in the top 100 selections. This is the seventh time in franchise history that the Saints have had two first-round picks, if they actually make the selections.

National media has been rampant with speculation that New Orleans pulled off this deal as part of another pending move. The theory is that the Saints could package their two first-round choices to move up further to draft a quarterback.

It’s a move that seems unlikely. That essentially would mean that the Saints would surrender at least two first-round picks and a second, because of the previous trade, to draft a quarterback from what's considered to be a down class.

Liberty's Malik Willis and Kenny Pickett of Pitt are the consensus top two signal callers available. Matt Corral of Mississippi, Cincinnati’s Desmond Ridder, and Sam Howell of North Carolina are other first-round possibilities.

The Saints have already officially interviewed both Willis and Pickett. They've met with Pickett twice, at the Senior Bowl and again at the NFL Scouting Combine. New Orleans has hosted wideouts Jameson Williams, Treylon Burks, and Skyy Moore on official draft visits. Those are the only players they've hosted so far.

The Saints re-signed QB Jameis Winston this offseason to a two-year contract extension. Winston completed 59% of his passes with 14 touchdowns and 3 interceptions last season while averaging 186 yards per game in seven starts. He suffered a season-ending knee injury in Week 8.

The 28-year-old Winston was the first overall pick in the 2015 NFL Draft and is one of just nine players in NFL history to throw for over 5,000 yards in a season. He’s a proven playmaker, but has also been prone to crippling turnovers throughout his career.

Winston's two-year contract will not be a big hit on the Saints salary cap. However, does that show that New Orleans is committed to the talented signal caller?

Winston was just getting acclimated to the team's system when he went down with injury. Winston also ran the offense without injured All-Pro WR Michael Thomas, leaving a massive void of talent at receiver.

Thomas is back, which will boost the entire offense. The Saints are still expected to use a high draft choice on a deep class of talented receivers. New Orleans also lost Pro Bowl LT Terron Armstead in free agency. The offensive line still looks strong after an injury-marred year, but there are several talented tackles that will be available early in the draft.

Whatever the Saints do in this month's draft will reveal their commitment to Jameis Winston. If they package the 16th and 19th selections to move up for a quarterback, that would seem to show a lack of confidence in Winston.

A more likely scenario, given the amount of talent on the roster, is that New Orleans gives Winston another weapon or bolsters his protection with at least one of those picks. They could still draft a quarterback with their other first-round selection while improving the on-field talent for 2022.

A quality wideout or tackle should still be on the board when New Orleans picks again in the second round. However, evaluators agree that there's a big drop-off in talent after the top four prospects at each position.

Given his age, abilities, and past production, Jameis Winston could still be a franchise quarterback. The Saints draft strategy will reveal whether they believe that to be true.

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