USA TODAY International Edition
Saints’ survivor status to be tested
NEW ORLEANS – It went down as maybe the most improbable victory the Saints have ever had under Sean Payton.
With Jameis Winston knocked out early with a knee injury, the Saints were pressed to beat Tom Brady and the Buccaneers with Trevor Siemian. And they did it again.
Drew Brees is retired and serving witness from the TV studio now, but it was evident with the 36- 27 victory at the raucous Superdome on Sunday – capped by the late pick- six of Brady by P. J. Williams – that the resilience coursing through the DNA of the Saints at times like these won’t quit.
Is there any team more equipped to rally after losing their starting quarterback?
Insert Bill Parcells logic here: You are what your record says you are.
In 2019, the Saints were 5- 0 with Teddy Bridgewater filling in for an injured Brees.
Last season, Taysom Hill took over for an injured Brees and the Saints went 3- 1.
Now here’s another challenge, with the rest of Winston’s season now over just weeks after he won the competition against Hill for the starting nod to replace Brees.
In crunchtime on Sunday, the Saints didn’t flinch. Instead, the defense delivered the finishing blow and proved it’s hardly about the fill- in quarterback saving the day by himself.
“For the last three seasons, we’ve been in this situation,” Cameron Jordan, the defensive end and team captain, said after the latest drama.
“So, it’s not new to our defense. It’s not new to our team. If anything, it shows you how resilient our team has been.”
What next?
After Sunday’s game, Payton described Winston’s left knee injury as “significant,” and the team confirmed on Monday that he would miss the remainder of the season with a torn anterior cruciate ligament. The quarterback also damaged his medial collateral ligament, Payton said.
Winston, whose revival with the Saints came with a reduction of the turnover issues that plagued him during his Bucs tenure, was injured in the second quarter on Sunday when dragged down by linebacker Devin White with a horse- collar tackle that caused his leg to buckle.
“I cried when I saw him coming in,” Payton said of encountering Winston after the game.
Knowing Payton, the tears for Winston have morphed into a determination to find some new solutions with more than half the season left and the