The Pittsburgh Steelers are in need of a quarterback and one NFL analyst suggests they should pursue former top draft pick, Jameis Winston.
There are countless theories and ideas about what the Pittsburgh Steelers should do in regards to their quarterback situation in 2022. The more I break down the film of the quarterback prospects in the NFL Draft, the more I think perhaps it’s best to wait until 2023 to look for a long-term option.
Still, others believe Pittsburgh should look to fill the void left by Ben Roethlisberger via trade or free agency. Recently, CBS Sports NFL Insider Jason La Canfora wrote an article depicting one critical move each NFL team should make. For the Steelers, La Canfora believes Pittsburgh should aggressively pursue QB Jameis Winston.
Here was his reasoning as to why the Steelers need to go after Winston, according to the CBS Sports article:
"Make a run at Winston. Mason Rudolph and Dwayne Haskins are not the answer and this team can still contend with sufficient QB play. Winston would unlock the downfield passing game and create some space for Najee Harris in the box. Regardless, you need a veteran QB who has won some games in the league. I’d also promote from within for GM."
I agree with some of what La Canfora had to say in his quote. I do believe that Jameis Winston could help improve Pittsburgh’s deep passing game — which has been a real issue over the past three years. However, I’m not convinced that Winston is the right man for the job.
Should Steelers pursue Winston?
Going back several years, Jameis Winston has been a name linked to the Steelers to be Ben Roethlisberger’s predecessor thanks to their similar builds and skillsets. However, many fans aren’t thrilled about this idea. This has a lot to do with Winston’s poor decision-making.
From 2015 to 2019, no quarterback had more interceptions than Winston. In 2019, his 5,109 passing yards and 33 touchdowns were overshadowed by the fact that he threw a whopping 30 interceptions. This was only good enough to get Tampa Bay to a record of 7-9 on the season.
It also doesn’t help that Winston has a career record of 33-44 (though some will point to his most recent 5-2 sample with the Saints as a reason to give him another shot).
Regardless of his career results, Winston is aided by his former first overall pick status, and he will get a shot to start for another team. Winston also turned just 28 years old in January and still has a noticeably big arm on film and a lot left to offer.
For the Steelers, I’m confident that he could beat out guys like Mason Rudolph and Dwayne Haskins for a temporary starting gig; however, I don’t know if that makes Pittsburgh a much better football team next season.
Personally, I wouldn’t have listed signing Jameis Winston as the critical move the Steelers must make during the 2022 offseason. However, I do believe he could be a respectable stop-gap option at the QB position during a transition phase. Pittsburgh would just have to hope to get the Jameis we saw in New Orleans rather than the turnover machine he was for the Buccaneers to begin his career.