Look, this isn’t the conversation we want to be having about Jameis Winston. It isn’t his fault that he’s getting banged up. But the New Orleans Saints starting quarterback was listed as a limited participant on Wednesday’s injury report, and with a new designation — in addition to the previously-reported back issue (4 of his 33 vertebrae are fractured, which our own Maddy Hudak examined further here), he’s now listed with an ankle injury, too. Whether or not that is connected to the foot sprain that cost him time in training camp is unclear.
So is it time to put him on ice? It’s at least a conversation worth starting. If Winston’s functionality is limited by these injuries, and it sure looked like the case with so many off-target throws and hesitant movements last week, the Saints aren’t doing him any favors in continuing to play him. Many players all across the NFL are dealing with injuries, some minor, others major; but it’s a long season with 15 games left to play, and it’s irresponsible at best to keep trotting Winston out there when his body is in such disrepair. It gets to a point where the risks (further injury, life-long ailments, and, you know, more poor performances and lost games) outweigh the rewards (winning games). Just don’t expect Winston to go to the bench willingly. He’s not going to take himself out of action any time soon.
