Saints' Payton expects QB competition between Winston, Hill

New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton adjusts his mask before their game against the Minnesota Vikings at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports

Saints' Sean Payton expects QB competition between Jameis Winston, Taysom Hill

By Zac Wassink | Last updated Mar 16, 2021 2:41 PM ET

Future Hall of Famer Drew Brees officially retired on Sunday, and the New Orleans Saints responded by signing former No. 1 overall draft pick Jameis Winston, Brees' backup last season, to a fresh one-year contract that could be worth up to $12 million.

While speaking on "The Dan Patrick Show" on Tuesday, New Orleans head coach Sean Payton suggested he's good with having Winston and Swiss-army-knife option Taysom Hill on his depth chart.

Are the Saints set at the quarterback position?

Sean Payton: "I think we are. I think we are."
— Amie Just (@Amie_Just) March 16, 2021

Dan Patrick: "If the season started today, Sean..."

Sean Payton: "Yeah, here we go..."

Payton: "I've told both of them, 'The two of you are gonna compete for this position. They understand it. They'll come in. We've already had a chance to see both of them to some degree."
— Amie Just (@Amie_Just) March 16, 2021

The Saints had previously been linked in trade rumors with unsettled Seattle Seahawks signal-caller Russell Wilson, while some have also wondered if New Orleans should make a play for disgruntled Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson.

Hill, not Winston, received starts last fall when Brees was sidelined by serious rib and lung injuries, and the 30-year-old recently agreed to a contract restructuring to save the Saints salary-cap space for 2021.

Barring what appears to be an unexpected transaction, it appears Brees' immediate successor is already on the New Orleans roster. Payton, along with everybody else, will learn exactly who that man is at some point this summer.

Zac Wassink

Zac Wassink is a longtime sports news writer and PFWA member who began his career in 2006 and has had his work featured on Yardbarker, MSN, Yahoo Sports and Bleacher Report. He is also a football and futbol aficionado who is probably yelling about Tottenham Hotspur at the moment and who chanted for Matt Harvey to start the ninth inning of Game 5 of the 2015 World Series at Citi Field. You can find him on X at @ZacWassink

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