Why the Saints have by far the most compelling quarterback situation in the NFL
In a league brimming with juicy quarterback stories, there’s none more intriguing in the NFL than the one percolating way down yonder in New Orleans.
Where else can one find:
▪ Drew Brees — A 41-year-old first ballot Hall of Famer and budding analyst for NBC Sports who’s likely approaching his 20th and “Last Dance’‘ in the NFL.
▪ Taysom Hill — The coveted Swiss army knife who went from making a bottom-roster salary for three seasons as an undrafted rookie to signing a two-year, $21 million contract and poised to replace Brees under center as early as next season.
▪ Jameis Winston — The No. 1 overall pick in 2015 and former face of a franchise who was shoved out the door by Tom Brady in Tampa Bay and now making virtual peanuts in New Orleans trying to revive his career. Winston signed a one-year, $1.1 million deal that features a $148,000 signing bonus and $952,000 base salary.
▪ Tommy Stevens — An unheralded graduate transfer from Penn State who struggled through an injury-riddled fifth college season at Mississippi State and inexplicably triggered a bidding war for his services in the last hours of the draft between the Saints and Carolina. At one point, the Saints offered to guarantee $144,000 of Stevens’ first-year salary as an undrafted rookie free agent. Stevens declined because he wanted to honor his commitment to Carolina.
Let me be crystal clear: The QB story in New Orleans has nothing to do with the depth chart. Number 9 is clearly No. 1, Hill remains the designated heir apparent and expect the team to carry three active QBs into each game with Winston in the mix.
But the collective stories of Brees, Hill, Winston and Stevens in 2020 is the stuff of which sports movies are made.
Truth be told, Stevens has garnered more interest in the NFL than Winston, eventually prompting the Saints to send their sixth-round pick in 2021 to the Houston Texans in order to trade back into the draft and take Stevens midway through the seventh round (No. 240).
Saints coach Sean Payton apparently envisions Stevens as the second coming of Gadget Man, Taysom Hill.
“There’s no way I was going to lose this kid,” Payton told Jeff Duncan of The Athletic. “We know the role. We invented the role.”
There’s more to the story.
It’s true, Payton didn’t want to lose “the kid.’” But, he certainly didn’t want to lose Stevens to Carolina where former Saints offensive assistant Joe Brady (2017-18) now toils as offensive coordinator under first-year coach Matt Rhule.
At one point on Day 3 of the draft, Payton sent Brady a text that read “not so fast.” Then, according to Duncan, Payton texted Stevens and his agent, Buddy Baker, saying, “I’m tired of asking. Now, I’m taking.’”
Brady made a huge name for himself last season at LSU where he helped turn quarterback Joe Burrow into the face of the undefeated national champions, a Heisman Trophy winner and the No. 1 overall draft pick. The LSU playbook, with Brady as LSU’s passing-game coordinator, closely mirrored Payton’s offensive playbook, suggesting imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.
Additionally, Brady played a major role in luring former Saints backup quarterback Teddy Bridgewater to Carolina during free agency (three years, $63 million). Brady worked closely with Bridgewater in New Orleans in 2018. Brady also previously worked as a graduate assistant at Penn State, forging a relationship with Stevens and developing an appreciation for the player’s vast skillset.
So yes, it’s true Payton didn’t want to lose “the kid.’‘
But Payton especially didn’t want to lose Stevens to Brady, who has made a quantum leap from an obscure NFL offensive assistant in New Orleans into a lucrative, high-profile role with Carolina and competing against the Saints in the NFC South.
Count me among those champing at the bit for both Carolina-New Orleans games this season and in seasons to come.
The competitive juices apparently are already flowing.