New Orleans Saints: Battle to replace Brees is hotter than ever now

The New Orleans Saints need a replacement for Drew Brees and, with Jameis Winston and Taysom Hill back, the battle for the job is hotly contested.

After months of speculation, Drew Brees finally decided to hang it up. While it seemed touch and go for a while, he finally announced his intention on March 14.

It was a harrowing day for both Brees and the New Orleans Saints. The Saints have had his guidance, wisdom, and talent on their side since 2006. His contributions to the Saints and New Orleans as a whole are something that no one can replicate and won’t ever be able to take away from him.

However, it does leave the New Orleans Saints in a bit of a pickle. While Brees did have a slight decline in the past few years, he was still playing on a solid level. Trying to fill the void that Brees left isn’t going to be easy, though.

Currently, the Saints have a bit of a competition going on to see who will end up being the starter for the team when the 2021 season kicks off. It’s a story that a lot of us fans have been trying to predict since the beginning of last season.

First, the New Orleans Saints restructured Taysom Hill’s contract. While Hill started off as the team’s backup quarterback, he quickly became a jack-of-all-trades for the team. He went from playing quarterback to being a tight end, part of special teams and basically being everything the team asked him to be.

Recently, the Saints decided to redo that contract to a four-year, $140 million, though it does appear the intention was to create more cap space.

Then there’s none other than Jameis Winston. After Teddy Bridgewater, the Saints decided to sign Jameis Winston and it seemed like an odd move. Despite Winston not getting as much playing time as Hill, he’s still been able to make the most of his playing time and has sat behind Drew Brees as a learning experience.

Similar to Hill, Winston also signed a new contract with the Saints. Winston’s contract was a one-year deal, which doesn’t seem like as much security but has the potential for an extension.

Between Jameis Winston and Taysom Hill, who will win the battle to replace Brees?

There’s no pretending that the competition to replace Drew Brees hasn’t been going on for a while now. Replacing Brees isn’t an easy feat by any means, but both Hill and Winston have a distinct advantage over anyone else the Saints would bring in.

They’ve both already played under Brees and Sean Payton so they’d have some insider knowledge. Additionally, those two have already been under center so they know how to lead the Saints. Maybe not nearly as well as Brees, but Hill and Winston have a better chance at replacing him.

As for the two individuals, it’s tough to try and pick one over the other. Starting off with Hill, Hill was the Saints pick to replace Drew Brees when he was injured. Thankfully, Hill stepped up and proved why he was chosen.

During his tenure as a starter, Hill managed to win three of the four games, threw for 824 yards, and somehow managed to make sure the team won by large margins to secure their victories. The game against the Eagles felt like it was more of a fluke but ultimately, Hill proved himself as a capable replacement for Brees.

Moving to the other side of the coin, we have Jameis Winston. Winston doesn’t have a plethora of stats for us to look at. In the times, the Saints used him, Winston didn’t disappoint but really didn’t wow either.

The reason the Saints would go with Winston over Hill would be his experience. Winston has previously lead a team whereas Hill has not and would have more experience in that regard. Ultimately though between the two of them, it’s hard to really figure out who is going to be the better pick when it comes to replacing Brees.

Then again, maybe Hill or Winston will surprise us during training camp. It’s still months away but one of them could be an early favorite. No doubt the competition to replace Drew Brees and have the Saints continue to be one of the most respected teams is going to be a huge part of this offseason.

Hill does seem like an early favorite to replace Brees, but it doesn’t mean we should count out Winston, though. Even though things look bleak for the Saints, we could end up being surprised by how this competition turns out.

As far as the New Orleans Saints go, it does seem like they’re at a crossroads as a team. They have some building blocks to be a championship team but haven’t quite found a way to make it yet. With Brees gone, it throws an even bigger monkey wrench into things. No matter who ends up leading the Saints though, it’s clear that the decision isn’t going to be easy for Sean Payton and we might end up seeing an entirely new era for the Saints in 2021.