What Jameis Winston provides the Browns as a starting quarterback going forward

Having multiple quarterbacks seems like a ritual

Last year, the Cleveland Browns went through a bunch of quarterbacks. The franchise used a total of five starting quarterbacks over the course of the 2023 season due to injuries.

Last year, starter Deshaun Watson led an upset win over the division leader Baltimore Ravens but in the process suffered a shoulder injury that ended up being season-ending. Rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson (DTR) had a hip injury. Journeyman P.J. Walker started two games and played in three. Veteran Joe Flacco was signed and helped lead the Browns to the playoffs in his five games. Finally, Jeff Driskel started in the final regular-season game against the Cincinnati Bengals in a meaningless contest.

Going into this season, the issue of having capable backups at the most important position on the football field was supposedly one of the team’s main goals. The team signed veterans Jameis Winston and Tyler Huntley to compete with DTR. The Browns looked for consistency at quarterback as a healthy Watson was all set to lead this year’s offensive attack.

That all ended on Sunday in the home loss to the Bengals.

With less than two minutes remaining in the first half, Watson made an awkward stumble after being flushed from the pocket, then suffered what appeared to be an Achilles injury and was subsequently carted off the field. The injury and Watson’s status for the season has since been confirmed.

In came DTR and later Winston played. Why was the less experienced QB used?

The Browns had made Winston inactive and listed him as the emergency third quarterback, so there was no other choice but for Thompson-Robinson to replace Watson. When DTR injured a finger in the fourth quarter, Winston was then able to enter the game.

The reports later state that DTR’s finger issue is not that serious.

Watson, age 29, has a long history of serious leg injuries while at the University of Clemson and during his stint in the NFL. In college, he played through a torn ACL in his left knee. As a rookie with the Houston Texans, he missed the last nine games after he tore the ACL in his right knee. With the Browns, he has had several issues including shoulder and ankle problems.

Just in his third season in Cleveland, Watson has not shown why he was a first-round draft pick or the player who led the league in passing yards in 2020 passing for 4,823 yards with 33 TD passes against just seven interceptions. Watson has struggled this season, posting the lowest QB rating of all qualified passers and his rushing yardage has diminished mightily.

Same story, different year

This scenario is exactly the same episode the Browns faced last season. Watson had gone down with a shoulder injury, Walker and DTR struggled on the field, and suddenly Cleveland GM Andrew Berry was looking at the free agent QB list to see which one he could sign.

A lot of folks wanted Matt Ryan while others screamed for Joe Flacco. Both were 38-years-old.

After Huntley was released by Cleveland, he signed with the Baltimore Ravens but is now the starting quarterback of the Miami Dolphins. Flacco is with the Indianapolis Colts and has played sparingly and is on a one-year deal worth $8.7 million. Yet another former backup, Jacoby Brissett, is playing second fiddle to rookie Drake Maye on the New England Patriots. Walker is on the practice squad of the Calgary Stampeders of the CFL.

Winston is the obvious choice for the Browns going forward. The question is, will DTR become the primary backup or will Berry once again take out his FA QB list and bring somebody in?

Early Tuesday, Cleveland reportedly signed Bailey Zappe but that doesn’t mean Berry is done just that Zappe was available to come in quickly.

A look at what is available on the free agent market reveals slim pickings but some dependable arms:

Ryan Tannehill, age 36

Passing attempts: 4,764

Passing completions: 3,063

Completion percentage: 64.3%

TD-INT: 216–115

Passing yards: 34,881

QB rating: 91.2

Teddy Bridgewater, age 31 (Currently coaching high school football)

Passing attempts: 2,067

Passing completions: 1,372

Completion percentage: 66.4%

TD-INT: 75–47

Passing yards: 15,120

QB rating: 90.5

Blaine Gabbert, age 35

Passing attempts: 1,568

Passing completions: 882

Completion percentage: 56.3%

TD-INT: 51–50

Passing yards: 9,487

QB rating: 71.7

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As for the likely starter for the Browns, Winston (6’-4”, 230 pounds) is a former first-round draft pick himself taken first overall by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 2015 NFL draft.

He was an absolute stud while at Florida State. He won the Heisman Trophy, Was the AP College Football Player of the Year, ACC Athlete of the Year, Two-Time First Team All-ACC, Consensus All-American, and a BCS National Champion. He won the Walter Camp Award, Manning Award, and the Davey O’Brien Award.

A talented baseball player as well, he was a switch-hitting outfielder and pitcher. He batted .235 with a .723 on-base plus knocked in 119 at-bats. His pitching had a career .300 ERA in 27 innings pitched.

“Famous Jameis” passed for 4,057 yards in his freshman year in a 14-game season and 3,907 yards the next season in just 13 games. He tossed 65 touchdowns in his college career with just 28 picks. His QB rating was 163.3 with a 66.0% completion ratio. He also rushed for 284 yards on 145 carries with an additional seven scores.

While with Tampa Bay, he was named to the PFWA NFL All-Rookie Team and selected to the Pro Bowl in 2015 as an alternate. In 2019, Winston was the NFL passing yards leader with 5,109 yards on 380 completions from 626 passing attempts. He threw for 33 TDs but sadly had 30 interceptions.

In 2017 Winston suffered a sprained AC joint in his right shoulder. While resting the shoulder and standing along the sideline during a game, he was involved in an altercation and was subsequently fined $12,154. The following year the Buccaneers picked up the fifth-year option on Winston’s contract and he received a three-game suspension for violating the league’s personal conduct policy when he allegedly groped a female Uber driver.

The entire 2019 season Winston dealt with a knee injury as well as issues with a broken thumb.

After that year, he had surgery to repair a torn meniscus and later had LASIK surgery. Seeking a new contract, the Bucs signed former New England Patriots signalcaller Tom Brady instead. Winston then inked a one-year deal with the New Orleans Saints for $1.1 million. He played his first game in Week 9.

In 2021 he was named the Saints starting QB but suffered another knee injury in Week 8. It was revealed he had a torn ACL plus MCL damage which landed him on IR. The following season he suffered four fractures in his back in Week 1. Last year he played in just seven games with just 47 passing attempts for 264 yards.

On March 20, 2024, Winston signed a one-year deal with the Browns.

What is strange in this situation is how the QB room was perceived as a position of strength going into this season. Watson’s presence in OTAs, minicamp, and in the meeting room played an important role in building his connection with new OC Ken Dorsey and understanding the outlook on the offense. Huntley and Winston were seasoned veterans with the perception that DTR could one day be the quarterback of the future.

And now, just one injury, one game, and the quarterback room is the same as last year. DTR is clearly not the answer. Winston will play until he is benched or injured. The franchise should have kept Huntley and released DTR. A new guy will need to be signed and will most likely become this year’s Joe Flacco and finish out the year.

And then after finishing near the bottom of the league this year, all of this quarterback talk will begin again going into the 2025 Browns training camp.