The Giants have chosen a quarterback to join their QB room and are rolling the dice.
Big Blue is signing veteran signal-caller Jameis Winston to a reported two-year, $8 million deal.
After courting a number of veteran quarterbacks including Aaron Rodgers, Russell Wilson and Joe Flacco, GM Joe Schoen now has at least one bridge quarterback on his roster in Winston. This arrangement potentially allows the Giants' front office to draft their QB of the future in this upcoming draft or a future draft while starting a competent signal-caller for the upcoming season. The Giants hold the No. 3 overall pick in April's draft.
Before the Winston signing, Tommy DeVito was the only quarterback under contract for New York.
NFL Network's Mike Garafolo reports the Winston signing does not change the Giants' pursuit of Rodgers or any other possible quarterback routes. Rodgers met with the Pittsburgh Steelers on Friday.
Winston, 31, is coming off a rollercoaster season with the Cleveland Browns. The former No. 1 overall pick started the season backing up Deshaun Watson, but once the Browns' QB went down due to injury, Winston came in and appeared in 12 games, making seven starts. In that span, Watson was 2-5 as a starter but threw for 2,121 yards and 13 touchdowns with a 61 percent completion percentage. However, he also threw 12 interceptions.
The 10-year veteran started his career with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after being drafted in 2015. In those five seasons, Winston could not get the Bucs to the promised land, having one winning season (2016) while throwing 121 touchdowns to 88 interceptions.
Winston then became a backup with the New Orleans Saints from 2020-23. He made 10 starts with the Saints, amassing a 6-4 record.
