Saints sign Jameis Winston to two-year, $28 million deal

The New Orleans Saints are one of a few teams that aggressively pursued Deshaun Watson only to miss out on the star quarterback, so they are bringing back a familiar face instead.

Jameis Winson has agreed to a two-year contract with the Saints. Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport of NFL Media report that the deal is worth $28 million with $21 million guaranteed, which is clear starter money.

Winston spent the last two seasons with the Saints. He tore his ACL in late-October, but he has said he hopes to be ready for the start of the 2022 season. The 28-year-old posted solid numbers before he got hurt, throwing for 1,170 yards, 14 touchdowns and three interceptions in seven games.

New Saints head coach Dennis Allen was an assistant on Sean Payton’s staff for several seasons before being promoted, so there is familiarity between him and Winston. The Saints must like what they saw from Winston before the season-ending knee injury, which is understandable as the team posted a 5-2 record in Winston's starts.