As a “special digital correspondent” for FOX Sports at Super Bowl Opening Night, Jameis Winston asked Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley which NFL team he should sign with when the former Hueytown High School star became a free agent in March?
Barkley said his old team, the New York Giants, needed a quarterback.
Winston appears to have taken Barkley’s advice: Winston and the Giants have reached an agreement on a contract, NFL Network, FOX Sports and New York Post reported. Terms of the deal were reported as two years for $8 million, with incentives that could push the value of the contract to $16 million.
Winston became an unrestricted free agent on March 12.
Winston provided a clue about his signing on Friday night, when he posted on social media: “Start spreading the news” with an emoji of an apple.
The Giants produced the fewest points in the NFC in 2024 while using three starting quarterbacks. Daniel Jones started the first 10 games before being released. Drew Lock had five starts and Tommy DeVito two to complete the season. DeVito is the only quarterback on New York’s current roster.
In his 10th NFL season, Winston started seven games for the Cleveland Browns after Deshaun Watson sustained a season-ending injury in 2024. Winston completed 181-of-296 passes for 2,121 yards with 13 touchdowns and 12 interceptions.
The Giants also have been linked to another free-agent quarterback, four-time NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers, who remains unsigned. New York holds the No. 3 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, too.
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A football and baseball All-State selection at Hueytown, Winston won the Class 5A Back of the Year Award and earned Parade and Under Armour All-American recognition in 2011 with the Golden Gophers.
In 2013, Winston became the youngest winner of the Heisman Trophy as he helped Florida State run up an undefeated season capped by a 34-31 victory over Auburn in the BCS national-championship game. Winston also won the Walter Camp Player of the Year Award and two honors recognizing the nation’s best quarterback – the Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award and the Manning Award – as he became the first freshman to be the ACC Player of the Year.
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The No. 1 pick in the 2015 NFL Draft, Winston spent his first five seasons as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ starting quarterback, during which he threw for 19,737 yards and 121 touchdowns. But after Winston led the NFL with 5,109 passing yards (the 10th most in one season in league history) and 30 interceptions in 2019, the Bucs switched to free agent Tom Brady and won the Super Bowl in 2020.
Winston chose to sign with New Orleans to apprentice with quarterback Drew Brees and coach Sean Payton for a season.
When Brees retired after the 2020 season, Winston won a quarterback competition with Taysom Hill in 2021. A season-ending injury sent Winston off the field after seven games.
After the 2021 season, the Saints tried to acquire Watson, who was unhappy with the Houston Texans. After New Orleans lost that sweepstakes to the Browns, the Saints re-signed Winston to a two-year, $28 million contract.
Injuries sent Winston off the field again in 2022, this time after he started the first three games. Back and ankle ailments kept Winston out of uniform for a couple of contests, but when he returned, he didn’t get his job back. The Saints stuck with Andy Dalton at quarterback all the way to the end of a 7-10 season.
In 2023, New Orleans succeeded in its quarterback pursuit – signing Derek Carr after the Las Vegas Raiders released him. That came with an offer to Winston: Take less money to stay on the team in 2023 or be released. Winston chose the former, before leaving New Orleans in free agency in 2024 to become Watson’s backup in Cleveland.
In 105 NFL regular-season games, with 87 starts, Winston has completed 1,944-of-3,178 passes for 24,225 yards with 154 touchdowns and 111 interceptions and run for 1,297 yards and 12 touchdowns on 323 carries.
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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on X at@AMarkG1.