Winston will compete with Russell Wilson and Jaxson Dart for the starting quarterback job in New York. We expect Wilson to win that job for Week 1 and Dart will take over if the Giants fall out of contention. For now, you can leave Winston on the waiver wire in all one-quarterback leagues, and only stash him in the deeper Superflex format. In his six full games last year he averaged 315 passing yards and two touchdowns per game, so if he does get a chance he will be worth an add off the waiver wire in most formats. Of course, the Browns went 1-5 in those starts and Winston threw almost as many interceptions as touchdowns, so you shouldn't necessarily expect him to hold on to the job if he is given a shot.
Winston completed four of eight passes for 47 yards, with a touchdown and an interception, in Thursday's 42-10 preseason win over New England.
He was again outplayed by Jaxson Dart, who was the second-string QB throughout most of training camp and the preseason. Fourth-stringer Tommy DeVito also showed well Thursday night, throwing three TD passes, which could set the stage for the Giants to drum up trade interest in either Winston or DeVito. If Winston stays with the Giants, he'll merely be their No. 3 QB behind Russell Wilson and Dart.
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Giants' Jameis Winston: Efficient in preseason opener
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Winston completed seven of 11 pass attempts for 62 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions in Saturday's preseason 34-25 win against the Bills.
Winston was the third quarterback to enter the game for the Giants, behind starter Russell Wilson and rookie Jaxson Dart. The strong-armed Winston couldn't get anything going with New York's offense on his first two drives, but he led the team on an 11-play, 67-yard drive in his third and final series, which he culminated with a seven-yard touchdown pass to Gunner Olszewski and a subsequent two-point conversion pass to Thomas Fidone. Winston brings a second veteran presence to New York's QB corps, but with Wilson locked in as the starter and Dart representing the team's future at the position, there isn't a path for Winston to make a significant fantasy impact unless injuries or ineffectiveness cause a shakeup in the pecking order.
Winston and Jaxson Dart split second-team reps Thursday in 11-on-11s, Patricia Traina of SI.com reports.
Reports from OTAs suggested Dart was typically the second QB through the rotation, behind starter Russell Wilson and ahead of Winston. It sounds like the second-team split was closer to 50/50 on Thursday, perhaps hinting at an even competition for the QB2 job. Winston signed a two-year, $8 million contract with the Giants in late March, a few days before they signed Wilson and about five weeks before they drafted Dart. Winston's contract includes $5.25 million guaranteed, so the Giants might try to trade him if Dart looks ready to back up Wilson by Week 1.
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Giants' Jameis Winston: Joining G-Men
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Winston and the Giants are finalizing a two-year, $8 million contract, Jordan Schultz of Fox Sports reports.
Per Schultz, the contract could be worth up to $16 million with incentives. Winston stepped into a starting role for the Browns last season after Deshaun Watson tore his Achilles, and he finished the campaign with 2,121 passing yards on a 61 percent completion rate and a 13:12 TD:INT over 12 contests while adding 83 rushing yards and a touchdown on 25 carries. For the time being, Winston looks to be in line for a starting role with New York, though the team could still pursue another quarterback in free agency or the draft given Tommy DeVito is the only other QB currently under contract. If Winston does land the starting role, he'll have one of the league's most talented young wideouts in Malik Nabers to throw the ball to, though turnovers have frequently been a flaw in Winston's game as evidenced by his 154:111 TD:INT over 105 regular-season contests. Winston missed the end of the 2024 regular season with a right shoulder injury, but that no longer seems to be a concern considering the Giants' willingness to hand him a potentially central role from the outset of the 2025 campaign.
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Jameis Winston: Scheduled to visit Giants
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Winston (shoulder) plans to visit with the Giants on Tuesday, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.
The Giants reportedly are waiting on Aaron Rodgers' decision while continuing to explore alternatives. They've already met/talked with 36-year-old Russell Wilson and 40-year-old Joe Flacco, making 31-year-old Winston the relative youngster of the bunch. There hasn't been any report of Winston needing surgery or dealing with major complications after he missed the end of the 2024 season with a right shoulder injury.
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Browns' Jameis Winston: Commits 14 turnovers in 12 games
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Winston (shoulder) finished the 2024 season having completed 181 of 296 pass attempts for 2,212 yards, 13 touchdowns and 12 interceptions while carrying 25 times for 83 yards and a touchdown in 12 appearances. He also lost two fumbles.
Winston injected life into the Cleveland passing attack after Deshaun Watson suffered a season-ending Achilles injury Week 7, but the short-term boost eventually wore off. A three-game stretch in which he threw eight interceptions -- including multiple pick-sixes -- ended Winston's run as the starter by Week 16. He ended up being inactive as the emergency No. 3 quarterback for the final three games of the season due to a right shoulder injury, but the issue doesn't seem serious and enabled the Browns to turn the offense over to younger signal-callers in Dorian Thompson-Robinson and Bailey Zappe down the stretch. Winston will enter the offseason as a free agent and could draw interest as a backup quarterback, though he's unlikely to find a team willing to enter the 2025 season with him as its starter, even as a bridge to a rookie or second-year signal-caller.
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Browns' Jameis Winston: Inactive third QB versus Ravens
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Winston (right shoulder) is the Browns' inactive third quarterback for Saturday's game against the Ravens.
Winston, who was listed as limited at practice Tuesday through Thursday, approached the contest listed as questionable. While he's been deemed the Browns' emergency No. 3 QB on Saturday, Bailey Zappe is slated to draw the start versus Baltimore, with Dorian Thompson-Robinson also expected to see signal-caller snaps in Cleveland's season finale.
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Browns' Jameis Winston: Questionable for Week 18
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Winston (shoulder) is listed as questionable for Saturday's game at Baltimore, Mary Kay Cabot of The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.
Winston doesn't appear to be in consideration for the Week 18 start, as coach Kevin Stefanski told Daniel Oyefusi of ESPN.com on Thursday that he intends to play Dorian Thompson-Robinson (calf) and Bailey Zappe under center. As a result, even if Winston is available Saturday, he likely will be the emergency third quarterback, at best.
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Browns' Jameis Winston: Remains limited in practice
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Winston (shoulder) was a limited practice participant Wednesday, Scott Petrak of the Elyria Chronicle-Telegram reports.
Winston has been listed as a limited participant on both of the Browns' first two Week 18 practice reports, and even if the quarterback is a full participant Thursday, head coach Kevin Stefanski has already said that Winston will likely be inactive for Saturday's season finale versus the Ravens, per Petrak. Dorian Thompson-Robinson (calf) and Bailey Zappe will serve as the Browns' top two quarterbacks this weekend, though Stefanski has yet to name a starter.
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Browns' Jameis Winston: Likely to be No. 3 QB in Week 18
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Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski said Tuesday that Winston (shoulder) will likely be inactive for Saturday's game at Baltimore as the team's emergency No. 3 quarterback, Scott Petrak of the Elyria Chronicle-Telegram reports.
Since being demoted from the starting role following a three-interception performance in a Week 15 loss to Kansas City, Winston has been inactive while managing an injury to his throwing shoulder. The Browns have listed him as a limited participant in each of their last five practices, and Stefanski's comments Monday seemingly indicate that Winston is unlikely to make enough progress with his injury to make himself available as the top backup for the regular-season finale. With Dorian Thompson-Robinson having sputtered in both of his starts since displacing Winston atop the depth chart, Stefanski said he's leaving the door open for both Thompson-Robinson and Bailey Zappe to play snaps in Week 18.
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Browns' Jameis Winston: Serving as emergency QB in Week 17
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Winston (shoulder) is inactive Sunday against Miami and will serve as Cleveland's emergency third quarterback.
Dorian Thompson-Robinson would have started behind center for the Browns regardless of Winston's status, but the latter's inactive designation will push Bailey Zappe to the No. 2 QB role Sunday. Meanwhile, Winston will be eligible to enter the game only if both Thompson-Robinson and Zappe are forced out of the game due to injury, illness or ejection.
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Browns' Jameis Winston: Questionable for Week 16
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Winston (shoulder) is questionable for Sunday's game against the Bengals, Daniel Oyefusi of ESPN.com reports.
Winston has lost his gig as the Browns' starter, but coach Kevin Stefanski said Friday that Winston could still potentially be the backup to Dorian Thompson-Robinson, according to Oyesfusi. If Winston doesn't get cleared for the QB2 role, Bailey Zappe will handle those duties.
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Browns' Jameis Winston: Working through shoulder injury
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Winston (shoulder) was listed as a limited practice participant on Thursday's injury report, Mary Kay Cabot of The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.
In addition to being demoted to the backup quarterback behind Dorian Thompson-Robinson, Winston is now dealing with an injury to his throwing shoulder. If the injury prevents Winston from suiting up against the Bengals on Sunday, then Bailey Zappe would be in line to take over as the No. 2 quarterback behind Thompson-Robinson.
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Browns' Jameis Winston: Confirmed as backup for Week 16
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Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski said Wednesday that Winston will operate as the backup to Dorian Thompson-Robinson during Sunday's game against the Bengals, Mary Kay Cabot of The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.
Stefanski confirmed Wednesday that Winston has at least temporarily lost hold of the starting gig, with the Browns set to make decisions at the quarterback position on a "week-to-week" basis moving forward, per Mary Kay Cabot of The Cleveland Plain Dealer. As such, Thompson-Robinson's chances of maintaining the starting job beyond this weekend will likely hinge on how he fares Sunday, and a poor performance could allow Winston to reclaim the No. 1 role Week 17 or Week 18. Across seven starts this season, Winston completed 61.6 percent of his attempts for 2,038 yards (7.2 YPA) and 12 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. He's also fumbled five times, losing two of them, and threw one touchdown while appearing in relief Week 7.
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Browns' Jameis Winston: Starting job in danger
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Coach Kevin Stefanski said after Sunday's 21-7 loss to the Chiefs that he'll make a decision later on the Browns' starting quarterback after the Browns benched Winston in the fourth quarter in favor of Dorian Thompson-Robinson, Daniel Oyefusi of ESPN.com reports.
Prior to yielding QB duties to Thompson-Robinson midway through the final quarter, Winston completed 16 of 25 passes for 146 yards, no touchdowns and three interceptions, was sacked five times for a combined loss of 37 yards and had two carries for minus-2 yards. On the Browns' only score, Winston handed the ball off to Jerome Ford, who did the rest of the work on a 62-yard TD. Thompson-Robinson didn't fare better than Winston on his two possessions: 4-for-9 passing for 18 yards and a pick and three rushes for 16 yards. It's unclear when Stefanski may make a call between the two ahead of next Sunday's game at Cincinnati, but Winston seems to be in danger of getting benched, at least in the short term.
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Browns' Jameis Winston: Sleeper QBs
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Check the weather in Cleveland prior to kickoff Sunday, and hopefully the conditions are OK for Winston and the Browns passing game. Winston got bad news Friday with David Njoku (hamstring) missing practice all week, and Cedric Tillman (concussion) remains out for Week 15. But Winston should be able to rely on Jerry Jeudy and Elijah Moore, and volume will be in Winston's favor. He's now scored at least 19.3 Fantasy points in four of six starts, including three outings with at least 29.6 points. And four of the past six quarterbacks against Kansas City have scored at least 20.1 Fantasy points, making Winston a low-end starter in deeper leagues.
Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski confirmed Monday that Winston will start Sunday's game against the Chiefs, Daniel Oyefusi of ESPN.com reports.
Stefanski noted that despite being eliminated from playoff contention, the Browns' focus is "just trying to find ways to get a win," and to that end, Winston is seen as a better candidate to direct the offense than backup Dorian Thompson-Robinson. Winston -- who has logged a 2-4 record as the team's starter -- thus is slated to face the 12-1 Chiefs this weekend following a Week 14 outing in which he completed 24 of 41 passes for 212 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions in a 27-14 loss to the Steelers.
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Browns' Jameis Winston: QBs to Start
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Winston faced the Steelers in the snow in Week 12 and passed for 219 yards, no touchdowns, and an interception, and he added a rushing touchdown for 13.4 Fantasy points. This isn't an easy matchup, and Pittsburgh is No. 1 in the fewest Fantasy points allowed to opposing quarterbacks. But Winston is averaging 47.8 pass attempts per game in his four non-snow games, and he just passed for 497 yards, four touchdowns, and three interceptions at Denver in Week 13. Joe Burrow just had 25.3 Fantasy points against the Steelers in Week 13, and I like Winston as a low-end No. 1 quarterback in all leagues.
If it wasn't for the awful matchup, Winston may be ranked as a top-five QB in Week 14. Just remember, the last time he faced this defense, he only threw for 219 yards and didn't throw a touchdown pass. Still, there are six teams on a bye, and he just threw for 497 yards and four touchdowns against the Broncos, the team that used to be the number one defense versus quarterbacks. The weather should be good in Pittsburgh this week, and I'm trusting the guy who is averaging 24 FPPG as a starter.
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Browns' Jameis Winston: Week 14 Waiver Priority List
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The full Winston experience was on display in Week 13 at Denver. He passed for 497 yards and four touchdowns, but he also threw three interceptions, including two returned for touchdowns. He's now scored at least 29.6 Fantasy points in three of five starts with the Browns, and he's worth using as a low-end starter in Week 14 at Pittsburgh. He only scored 13.5 Fantasy points against the Steelers in Week 12, but that game was in the snow. Winston has attempted at least 41 passes in every non-snow game, and he should get plenty of volume in the rematch with Pittsburgh, which will help in a tough matchup. He also has a tough matchup in Week 15 against Kansas City, but then he gets Cincinnati in Week 16, which is fantastic. Winston is worth adding in all leagues for 5-10 percent of your remaining FAB.
