Prescribing the Solution
So what, if anything, can Sean Payton do to fix what ails Jameis?
You might say that Payton has a tall task ahead of him, given the turnover rate from Winston a season ago and the simple fact that Winston’s willingness to take risks with the football, which dates back to his time at Florida State, might be a permanent trait. Sometimes quarterbacks just are who they are, and Winston’s aggression and willingness to push the envelope with the football is what allowed for some spectacular plays in college. But it has hamstrung him in the NFL.
But if play speed is another issue for him – linked to the turnovers – how can Payton fix that? Especially in an offense that is predicated upon the quarterback making quick decisions with the football. Let’s not forget, while he never worked for him, Payton is fully a branch off the Bill Walsh coaching tree. His West Coast system, which has morphed over his time in the NFL, can be traced directly back to Walsh and his offense.
Consider how San Francisco 49ers quarterbacks coach Sam Wyche described Walsh’s quarterback during the 1981 season. “Joe [Montana] understands the total concept of our intricate system incredibly well for a young quarterback. He makes quick, intelligent decisions during a play when he has to pick and choose his receivers. He knows precisely what is right or wrong with a play as soon as it happens.” Joe Montana’s Art and Magic of Quarterbacking, pg 135.
Does that description sound like Winston at all?
But that is the offense he is stepping into, and that is what will be demanded of him in the season ahead. How can a quarterback with his current play style, and his flaws, improve in this kind of environment?
Because Payton has done it before.
Coming out of Purdue University, Drew Brees was not exactly a perfect prospect. There were questions about the spread offense he ran under Joe Tiller, as well as the 45 interceptions he threw in college, including 20 his first year as a starter. There were questions about him having a slow release. There were also questions about his height – or lack thereof – and those questions saw him fall into the second round and the San Diego Chargers.
During his time in San Diego, he played under Marty Schottenheimer, in an offensive system that married a power running game with the vertical elements of the Coryell downfield system. This might not have been the best stylistic fit for Brees, and during his time in San Diego he threw 53 interceptions, including 16 in 2002 (his first year as a starter), 15 in 2003 (over just 11 games) and 15 his final year with the Chargers. If you look throughout his career at his highest interception percentages by season, three of the top four occurred while in San Diego.
When he agreed to terms with the New Orleans Saints as a free agent for the 2006 season – in the wake of a brutal shoulder injury that saw the Miami Dolphins pass on him as a free agent for Dante Culpepper – his slow release was mentioned right at the top by John Clayton.
But Payton took Brees and helped craft him into the player we see today, a player destined for Canton. In Payton’s West Coast system, Brees was able to tap into some of the elements that made him a second-round pick to begin with: The speed and quickness of the Tiller offense dating back to his days at Purdue. Brees might not have been an ideal fit for what San Diego was running, but he was perfect for the lightning-fast decision-making required in a Payton offense rooted in West Coast concepts.
Winston might not have that same background, but he comes to a coach that has done this before, taking a quarterback with question marks about how he will fit into an offense and getting him up to speed in record time. His task with Winston is just that: Getting him up to speed. Making his thought process faster, making the ball come out quicker. Increasing the play speed.
Can Winston do it? There are examples of him executing designs with the requisite processing and play speed that will be required of him in the Payton system. On this completion against the Panthers you can see him working a speed out route with anticipation, timing and rhythm:
Remember the curl/flat design we broke down earlier? Here is an example of Winston doing it the right way:
There is enough talent here for Payton to work with, and evidence that Winston can function in such a system. To his credit, Winston seems to understand the challenges facing him and is embracing the idea of joining a “Harvard of quarterbacking.” He’ll be learning from a coach who has done this before as well as the quarterback his new coach helped groom into a Hall of Famer. If there was a perfect environment for Winston to grow as a passer, New Orleans is the place.
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