8:40pm: Dealing with a severely depleted receiving corps, Dalton put up lesser numbers than his first two starts (17-of-32 passing, 162 yards, one touchdown) in a 30-26 loss. The Saints’ effectiveness in the running game had them either leading or tied until the closing minutes of the fourth quarter, though, which could convince the coaching staff to stick with Dalton.
When asked about his plans at QB for Thursday’s game, Allen did not name a starter. He explained that Winston has still not fully recovered, adding, via ESPN’s Katherine Terrell, “Let’s get in the study on that and we’ll see where he’s at and then we’ll go from there.”
11:08am: Saints quarterback Andy Dalton has started each of the past two games for New Orleans in place of Jameis Winston, who continues to deal with back and ankle injuries. Winston will be active and in uniform for the team’s Week 6 matchup with the Bengals today, but only because the club needed roster space for positions other than backup QB.
That suggests that Winston is at least healthy enough to play on an emergency basis, which would seem to indicate that he will be back under center sooner rather than later. However, Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network reports that, regardless of Winston’s injury status, Dalton could become the Saints’ full-time starter if he continues to acquit himself well (video link).
Rapoport says Dalton has been a “calming influence” on the team’s offense. New Orleans is 1-1 in his two starts, including a narrow 28-25 loss to the Vikings in Week 4 and a 39-32 victory over the Seahawks in Week 5. In those games, Dalton — who served as Cincinnati’s starting quarterback for nine years before joining the Cowboys, Bears, and Saints as a presumptive backup/bridge starter in the last three offseasons — has completed 69.2% of his passes, throwing for 423 yards and two TDs against once interception, good for a QB rating of 98.5
Winston, meanwhile, struggled to a 79.5 QB rating in his three games at the helm this year, leading the Saints to a 1-2 mark in those contests. On the other hand, the two losses came after he suffered multiple fractures in his spine, which certainly had a significant impact on his performance.
The Saints re-signed Winston this offseason on a two-year, $28MM deal ($15.2MM guaranteed), and added Dalton on a one-year, $3MM accord. Winston spent the offseason rehabbing the ACL tear that ended his 2021 campaign prematurely, but the contracts that the two players received from New Orleans made it clear that Winston was viewed as the undisputed starter. Indeed, even after Winston’s injury and his struggles in a Week 3 defeat at the hands of the Panthers, head coach Dennis Allen said he was not considering a permanent QB switch.
Dalton’s efforts may have changed his HC’s mind, and if he plays well against his former club on Sunday, he could buy himself at least one more start, especially since the Saints have a short week in advance of their Thursday night bout against the Cardinals in Week 7.
The red rifle still riding
Although Winston offers more potential upside, I think the steady, consistent floor provided by Dalton is the way to go based on the way the team is currently constructed
Good take. Winston can be quite streaky, running hot one game then cold as ice the next.
The presence of Payton was presumably the catalyst for the positive platitudes for Winston’s play. Indeed, in limited action with Payton, he seemed much more risk averse and even keeled than we saw in Tampa. Of course, the injuries very well be the reason for his regression back to his riskier ways, but I think that Payton himself had an impact on Winston’s play.
If the HC isn’t having an impact on the players he’s getting paid a very handsome salary for nothing.
That’s true. I wasn’t very high on Allen as a head coach, but Carmichael sticking around as O.C. presumably was supposed to ease that transition. Obviously that hasn’t happened. The Saints also obviously began to teeter a bit during Payton’s last year, which is expected given the retirement of a HoF quarterback, but that seemed to be natural transition growing pains and not a reflection on Payton himself. I don’t think that it was a reflection on how dependent Payton was on Brees, but that is of course a possibility.
In any case, I expect Allen to ride the talent of the defensive stars in New Orleans for a couple of years until they pick a new coach to manage the QB that they’ll likely select this year.
They have two decent QB’s it’s not the worst situation
Dalton didn’t lose the game – the defense did. Keep Winston on the bench until his back can no longer be used as an excuse for poor play.
The red riffle