New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees has finally hung up his cleats after 20 seasons in the NFL, and he will go down as the all-time leader in career completions, percentage, and yardage.
And in his absence, he leaves a gaping hole in the New Orleans Saints' roster. In Brees, the Saints are losing arguably their greatest player of all time. Brees brought a team hampered by constant mediocrity back from the brink in 2006, bringing hope to the Big Easy just after Hurricane Katrina. Brees then led the Saints to their very first Super Bowl appearance and victory in 2009-10.
The Saints are losing a Super Bowl MVP, a giant in the New Orleans community, and the beating heart and soul of their team. Who can ever hope to fill his shoes? Let's find an heir to the throne of the bayou.
Saints' 5 best Drew Brees replacements
5. Jameis Winston
As the incumbent starter going into this coming season, Jameis Winston is by far the most likely QB to inherit Brees' starting job.
And he's not without the raw talent to find success in New Orleans.
With the Saints' bloated payroll, Jameis Winston can be seen as a buy-low steal in retrospect from Tampa Bay, who probably didn't mind losing him for the alternative in Tom Brady.
The Saints have all the bargaining chips necessary to sign him for the minimum: no other team is so QB desperate as to pay a king's ransom for Winston, who has a career completion percentage just north of 60%. Pair this with 120 career touchdowns to over 130 total turnovers, and you have a wild gamble at the QB spot (read: not a good gambling spot).
But, if there is one coach to minimize those mistakes, it's Sean Payton. His offense is tricky, to be sure, but they are still a grinding, chain-moving offense. They get by with their reliance on the 1.5-headed monster that is the Kamara/Murray RB rotation, and otherwise run plenty of chunk plays in the air. Short yardage with Winston's monster of an arm means passes that could be hard to pick off if Winston's decision-making has been tempered at all by his time with the team. Because, if not, we actually saw another in-house alternative this past season…
4. Taysom Hill
Sean Payton has a love affair with Taysom Hill.
If Jameis Winston starts to really feel himself this offseason and a team comes at him with an offer he simply can't refuse, Hill is the next logical pick to start for New Orleans.
Hill was frequently brought in as a goal-line rusher at the QB spot for Drew Brees last season and saw a good bit of run starting when Brees went down. He is a specimen of a human: big, bruising, with tight-end size.
The question is: can he actually throw the football professionally at a high level?
He already had a bit of a turnover problem in his four starts last season, but to his credit, they were his first four NFL starts ever, and the Saints went 3-1 with him under center. He's certainly a weird QB style-wise, but Payton is nothing if not creative. He's already let go of solid pass catchers in Emmanuel Sanders and Jared Cook, neither of whom saw much intended usage last season.
This could indicate a pending shift in offensive philosophy, which makes this offseason a prime opportunity to build an offense catered to Hill's skillset. So long as he doesn't make any glaring mistakes, Hill can rely on New Orleans' top tier defense to help him tread water.
3. Teddy Bridgewater
Now, we get into some speculation. This option is undoubtedly one that has crossed Payton's mind at some point, as the Carolina Panthers have been speculated to be shopping Bridgewater for the right price. And while he's not a game changing signal caller by any means, he led the Saints admirably in 2019 when Brees was injured, and he makes zero glaring errors. Perfect game manager for an offense that doesn't rely on fireworks displays to win (except for Alvin Kamara).
The issue in acquiring Bridgewater's services is that “right price.” Carolina will definitely want something substantial in return for Bridgewater, preferably a quarterback. Their primary dancing partner this offseason is rumored to be Houston, and if those rumors heat up again, there is no way that New Orleans can offer a package that provides Deshaun Watson's sheer value to Carolina.
2. Mac Jones
Now, as stated before, New Orleans is in the doghouse with the cap. Dangerous cuts have already been made on the offensive end: Jared Cook and Emmanuel Sanders, while they weren't used often, are heavy losses for whoever takes Drew Brees' position going forward.
So why not draft his heir? This year's QB crop is rich with intriguing prospects beyond Trevor Lawrence and Justin Fields, and a couple that can fall into New Orleans' lap are Alabama's Mac Jones and NDSU's Trey Lance.
Jones is the more likely of the two to fall, with a much lower ceiling than his draft-classmate. That shouldn't trouble Sean Payton, who has invested a lot of money in his defense, enabling that grinding offense to hum on the backs of its stellar ground game. Mac Jones is familiar with such a system, or at least philosophy, at Alabama, and he is no stranger to harsh coaching. He certainly has an arm, and the variables that come from not knowing how he'll play without such a talent disparity in his favor are minimized by Payton's low-risk tactics.
1. Trey Lance
As stated before, this year's draft will be the best place for New Orleans to find a hidden gem at QB who also makes sense with their current payroll. Watson and Sam Darnold are the premiere trade chips rumored to be on the market, but they will be too expensive. Carson Wentz is off the board, and Russell Wilson will likely stay in Seattle this season, despite his weird feud with Seahawks brass.
The other candidates aren't nearly as sexy as those names. This one is.
Between Trey Lance and Mac Jones, Lance is the less likely of the two to fall, as the hype for him is continuing to build. And for good reason: the kid is talented. Great zip and accuracy on his deep balls, with athleticism in spades. Look at his highlight tapes, and you'll see him regularly break through lines on broken plays, solo tackle defenders in the open field after a turnover, and throw darts on the move.
The best part: while he's talented, Lance is also as tough as overcooked chicken breast. A tip: if you are a team looking to draft high-ceiling QB talent, look at quarterbacks that played spectacularly at unspectacular schools. They know how to cook with less-than-stellar ingredients, are usually the hungriest for respect, and are the least demanding professional prospects. Trey Lance fills all of those boxes.
Here's the thing with these New Orleans Saints for the next few years: the NFC South belongs to Tom-pa Bay now. However, New Orleans' defense is still exactly what they paid for: tough, strong, with the ability to keep the Saints in any game they don't lose through dumb mistakes. On the offensive end, especially at quarterback, these Saints are building for the future, and as long as they at least tread water, the future still shines bright in New Orleans.
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