CLEVELAND, Ohio -- If Jameis Winston had only been delivered from his pick-sixes like he prayed for, he might still be a Cleveland Brown.
Instead, he’s taking his act to the Big Apple, and what an act it is.
Winston, who went 2-5 in his seven starts with the Browns last season in place of Deshaun Watson, agreed to terms Friday on a two-year deal with the Giants worth $8 million, with incentives that can earn him up to $16 million.
According to NFL Network, the signing doesn’t preclude the Giants from signing Aaron Rodgers, who visited the Steelers on Friday. The Giants also hosted Russell Wilson last Friday, a day after he visited the Browns.
It remains to be seen if they’d still add Wilson in the event Rodgers signs with the Steelers. If not, the Browns remain interested in adding Wilson at a moderate bridge quarterback salary. The Steelers are still presumably interested in re-signing Wilson if they don’t land Rodgers, who left town without a deal Friday after a six-hour visit.
Winston’s agreement with the Giants came hours after Rodgers left Pittsburgh, and it seemed as though perhaps they’d be out on the four-time MVP, but that’s apparently not the case. The Giants, who own the No. 3 overall pick in the NFL draft, one behind the Browns, are also strongly considering a quarterback there. They’ve even contemplated trading up to No. 1 with the Titans.
In the meantime, they added Winston, 31, who struggled with interceptions in his seven starts for the Browns last season, going 2-5 in that span. He threw 13 touchdowns and 12 interceptions, including a trio of three-pick games, and eight in his last three. The final three in a loss to the Chiefs in Week 15, earned him a trip to the bench in favor of Dorian Thompson-Robinson, who was traded last week to the Eagles along with a fifth-round pick in exchange for former Steelers first-round QB Kenny Pickett.
But Winston also revived the Browns’ dormant offense, averaging more than 300 yards a game passing, and setting the club record with 497 against the Broncos, the same game in which he threw two pick-sixes and three INTs overall.
In the snow globe victory over the Steelers, he made snow angels and sang “let it snow, let it snow, let snow.”
His mic’d up segments were legendary, and his pre-game motivational speeches were straight from the pulpit.
He followed it all up with a spirited performance during Super Bowl week in New Orleans, where he crashed his pedal-cab, threw and caught crab legs from a balcony on Bourbon Street and performed with a jazz band as a correspondent for Fox Sports.
It was an act that played well in Cleveland, but might be even better suited for the bright lights of the big city.
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