QB Jameis Winston (11.13.24)
How fondly do you look back at those four years you had in New Orleans?
“Well, I’m grateful for every opportunity that I have. But I’m really grateful for the time, really one year, that I had with Sean Payton and Drew Brees of just learning how to play the quarterback position the right way.”
I was going to ask you; how much did that shape you into who you are now?
“I think it definitely was a process where I was looking to take all the superpowers that Drew Brees and Sean had and implement them in my system, yeah.”
How difficult were some of the lessons that you learned? You talked about learning how to play quarterback. How difficult are those lessons for a young quarterback to actually learn? Because everybody’s sort of — you think about your talent, but there’s more to it, obviously.
“It’s what to do and what not to do. And when you see a quarterback that has done it at a high level for a long time under a system that he’s been in for a long time, you just see the day in and day out detail and intentionality that is taken with every play.”
’21 was really good statistically for you before the injury. Was that the best you played? And whether it was or wasn’t, what worked in that stretch?
“We ran the ball well, we threw the ball well, and we played great, complimentary football. And that’s the key to success for any team. But that was a fun year that ended shortly.”
What do you take away from your last start, the three interceptions? And you’ve been a guy that’s been known as — you’re willing to let it fly and go vertical. So how do you balance the, “I want to take care of the football,” with, “I want to be true to myself and challenge defenses?”
“Yeah, everything in terms of every play is just off decisions. So, I’m assessing, like, how was the decision, right? A lot of situations can arise up in the game, but as long as the decision is right, then I’m building on it and I’m just eliminating the negative part.”
How do you feel about that — you bring up the decision thing, so when you go back and you look at that last start, how do you feel about the decisions that you made in that game?
“Yeah, I feel like I made some great decisions, but I also feel like that there’s some that I can eliminate to be better.”
So, when you look back at that ’21 season, I think it was 14 touchdowns and three picks in those seven starts. What were you doing so well to eliminate those negative plays?
“I think just as a team, we did a great job of playing together. And Sean Payton is one of the best play callers in the game. And again, watching the process of someone in front of me do it over, and over, and over again and just going out there and being who I am; take care of the football, great job carrying out my fakes, you know what I’m saying? Just doing everything that’s required to win.”
When you say that you learned what to do and what not to do, playing with Drew Brees and Sean Payton, it sometimes looks like those interceptions are thrown right to the defender. Obviously, that’s not what you’re trying, so how does that correlate with learning what not to do?
“Yeah, I think that goes to one play at a time. Everyone has their unique perspective, but only few, actually 32 people, are actually within the pocket and getting a chance to execute that. So, with my preparation, I’m going to continue to focus on one play at a time and eliminating the negatives and building on the positives.”
To the point about watching Drew and Sean work, what’s something that you didn’t do before then that you do now? Or that you didn’t do before…?
“I think the biggest thing was my film sequence, how I watched film throughout the week, just studying how Drew prepared. He prepared tirelessly. And the way that I prepared when I got in, sometimes, it was too much so. He was so efficient with his schedule. I believe that I became more efficient with what I do instead of just doing all I can do.”
What’s too much film?
“Well, it can be defined in certain ways, but when you’re overloading your mind with information that’s unnecessary, and when you’re taking away the study and making it just about watching film.”
Sometimes good quarterbacks like yourself, you were off to a great start there in New Orleans, you had those two challenging years with injuries. Sometimes guys don’t get another chance. Now you see you’re here getting another chance; Jared Goff got another chance, Geno Smith. How grateful are you that you’re back in the saddle and getting to play football again?
“Yeah, I’m grateful for this moment. Opportunities only come so often. So definitely it’s a privilege to lead the Cleveland Browns organization and be a starting NFL quarterback, and I take pride in that and I’m going to continue to do my very best.”
To that point, you see everyone rushes to judgment about every new class of quarterbacks. Now it’s Caleb (Williams) and Drake (Maye) and Jayden (Daniels). What are people missing about why quarterbacks need time to develop?
“Yeah, I think one for all the rookies…the rookies should not worry about any public scrutiny because again, they’re chosen. I think it’s a process. You see young guys coming in, getting used to the speed of the game, understanding that when you come from college there’s some good players, but they’re not the best players in the world. And as a quarterback position, it’s only one of you, so you have to be on top of every single thing. And I think through experience and wisdom, some people have time that they can grow. But I think when you play — like I’ve been in the league for 10 years, so I had to do something well for me still to be here. So just continue to let it fly, continue to build on like, ‘How’s my decision making process’? Don’t worry about the outcome and just focus on getting better every single year.”
Jameis, with this particular (New Orleans) Saints team, I mean they got off to the hot start, they’ve had some injuries, they’ve struggled. But what stands out about this defense and how dangerous they could potentially be?
“Well, what is dangerous about this defense is I know their leadership. Demario Davis and Cam (Cameron) Jordan are some of the best teammates and leaders that I’ve been around. And just speaking on Demario, Demario has helped me out so much just as a man, practicing against him every single day, walking in faith in Christ with him. So, I know the spirit that he functions from, so I know he’s definitely one of the leaders of this team. And I know Cam Jordan, highest energy — you think I got high energy, the highest energy that can even be imagined and he also applies that energy on the field. So, when you got people like that — and Tyrann Mathieu, I had two years with him, he’s one of the best safeties to ever play. When you got pieces like that on your team, you find a way to win. And I’m also happy for Darren Rizzi, this is another person, we’re talking about opportunities, where, man, he’s been special teams, getting a chance down in Miami (Dolphins), but he’s always been one of the best special teams coaches and now he has his opportunity, so he’s trying to make the most of it.”
As the quarterback now of a 2-7 team, how do you reverse what’s going on?
“One play at a time. We cannot fall victim to what’s behind us. We cannot press too far to what’s ahead of us. We have to focus on one day, one play, executing it perfectly, one play at a time.”
Demario Davis said that you were the best teammate that he’s ever had. How much does that mean coming from a guy like that, to hear something like that?
“Well, that means so much coming from a guy like that, because Demario was one of the key influences in terms of discipleship, of me continuing to walk and follow in my faith and trust in the Lord with my whole heart, just because of the man he is. Seeing him being a great father, seeing him being a great teammate, seeing him being an elite player obviously inspired me to be the man and the player that I am today.”
Kevin (Stefanski) talked about getting the run game going coming out of the bye. Why do you think it hasn’t been what it usually is around here?
“Well, I mean, one reason is when you’re studying the running back position, it starts with the front, right? And our front has been banged up from time to time. We just got one of the best running backs in the league back. So, I think just everyone developing a synergy, and us all gelling and working together, that’s what leads to a great, efficient run game. And Nick (Chubb) is getting healthy. Jerome (Ford), Pierre (Strong Jr.) and D’Onta Foreman, they did a great job. But at times, we were in games where we had to throw the ball more. So, I think us staying ahead of the sticks, being efficient, will allow our running game to continue to pick up and continue to increase.”
I saw that you took part in a spelling bee. Can you tell me about your spelling game and how good it is?
“Well, my spelling is really good. But in terms of Ryl Tea, they have polyphenols in them and they’re just very healthy for you. I support Ryl Tea because it’s a great tea. It’s a hydrating tea, and it’s one of the purest, cleanest teas that you can ever come by, because it’s real tea. Thank you for that ad.”
Do you feel like going back there (New Orleans) and just so many things that went on for you there, will you be overcome with emotion? I mean, do you kind of have to prepare for just being overwhelmed a little bit?
“You know, I just function out of gratitude. The people in New Orleans, I really love them. They really helped that transitional period in my life. They filled it up with joy. My teammates, they encouraged me, they pushed me. And the city of New Orleans is one of the best cities to be a part of. So, I’m definitely excited. But my primary focus is going out there, executing one play at a time perfectly. And that’s it. Because at the end of the day, all the emotions and all the ‘I love you’, that doesn’t matter. All that matters is us as Cleveland Browns to go out there, execute one play at a time to the best of our ability.”