Orleans, dot football, reported that based upon observations at
OTAs. Last week. Winston is moving with a visible limp. He
tore the ACL
in his knee week 8. Last year. He was cleared to participate
in the OTAs. So
I don't know. I'd be limping unless they decided whatever
limping he's doing. It, isn't that bad? But you know, Chris
one thing I've learned from working with you is and it's
an excellent point.
If you're limping,
you're compensating.
And if you compensate long enough,
what's going to happen?
Something else is going to get something else is going to get
injured. Something. That's carrying the burden of the body
part that isn't 100% is going to be less than 100% because
it's going to get thrown out of whack. So
if he's limping I don't I mean if it's true that he's limping.
I don't see how that's a good thing. And I don't know when
I don't know when he's fully cleared and ready to go, but
obviously he wants to
Prove himself. He wants to earn his money. He wants to be ready
to go. Here's some video that we can scrutinize as to whether
or not. He's limping. Maybe he's just struggling with that
gigantic. I think probably he is. Yeah. I mean, he's Ginger.
I'm sure.
And then yeah like to your point, what you're saying that
you're not wrong there, those damn knee braces are not easy.
You're going to be a little bit uncomfortable and walking
weird, especially at first, you know, but but you know, I'm not
shocked to hear that.
There's a little limp. I'm not I mean, it's not that far out.
He's playing quarterback. I'm sure. We're just going. Hey,
we're not going to ask you to run or do a whole bunch of
cutting. We'd like you to just to do what you're seeing right
here.
And honestly, you know, seeing just a few things. I saw even
online last night. Like I know it, I saw the reports during
the weekend to he's moved.
It wasn't as bad. A limp. As I was expecting. I will say that
just from the report itself. I thought, oh man, maybe is he
really like really struggling here? Okay. I found that to be
a somewhat common walk for guy that that type of injury this
time. I just think the bracelet Bothering him. I haven't seen
a lot of it. Right, but he's, you know, we post those the Marge
Jameis Winston something, Lamar Jackson Jameis Winston's goofy
workout videos on social media, right? Those thing, you know,
he's doing all those weird things that apparently work for
him. Yeah.
I didn't see him limping in any of those rights posted.
I think, I think the brace is just bothering him. I think
he's a
big freakin brace. How am I supposed to move around with
this thing on my leg? It just be
heard. It feels like that's what it was. It does seem kind
of seemed like that. So yeah. Yeah, well, we'll continue to
watch it. And again, I don't think they're going to ask him
to do much. Then what we saw right there. I bet you him
shuffling
through the cones is about as
aggressive as it gets for him there. But oh man, a mic. I'm,
I've been with too many players who had to wear that brace and
their knees feel 100%. They don't have an issue
and they, yes, just because that steel or whatever it is
the carbon fiber, whatever. Just get in kind of Hit
the bones around the knee,
and make things sword a little uncomfortable even when your
knee is totally like, Up top and ready to go. So I'm sure he
is getting used to it a little bit. It wasn't. As bad as I was
expecting. I'll say that.
He has a team mate in Michael Thomas that he hasn't really
been able to play with yet because Thomas suffered
the ankle injury week one of the 2020
season after he had a record-setting 2019 and we've
hardly seen him. He's not ready yet. Saints planned for
training camp. He's been at OTAs, but he hasn't worked on
the field.
I feel like they've gotten
resolved, whatever the issues were and there were issues
there and there was some reporting that was done by
Jeff. Duncan. I believe during the 2020 seas and just about
how Rated the Saints will be coming
with Thomas and his attitude and the way he was treating
some of the employees and the organization. And that look,
I can't remember how clearly and pointedly, I reported this
time. But there were people around the
league who were saying that Thomas is Camp or trying to get
other teams to make, right? Offers Brian in advance of
the 2020 trade deadline, not the Saints. We're going to do it,
but he wanted out. So I don't know if
it was a thing between him and Sean Payton. There was
something Peyton's gone. So so the bridge is being rebuilt,
but But the bottom line is, he's not healthy till he's
healthy, and they have Chris olave, and they picked up
Jarvis Landry.
And people think it's going to be
a lava and Landry
and Michael Thomas.
I still like, it could be Landry plays the role of
Michael Thomas because maybe deep down. They know that
they're, you know, anything, they get out of Michael Thomas
at this point is gravy.
I mean, I'll be interested to see.
It's a huge question mark for their football team. Of course,
there's a lot of money and resources paid to this guy and
yeah. See.
He had the great year two years ago. I mean, he
hasn't necessarily
made the Saints feel great about all the money. They
thrown him that way, just because he's dealing with
injuries and then, yes, I mean, you talk to people around
the league or connected to the Saints and
you get the same sense there that,
you know, yet, maybe he got kind of got paid and,
you know, became a little harder to handle. I certainly
heard some things down there from people to say that that's
kind of what was going on or the way at least people felt
for sure,
but man, if he is, Is on the field
that makes you change or makes you think about them and go?
Whoa, man, whoa, olave him Jarvis. Landry Alvin Kamara
coming out of the backfield. We know that's a good offensive
line
man, if they could get him. And with that defense, that's where
we get back into the conversation. We had during
the draft where we go. I don't think the Saints are going to
take a quarterback because I think they think they're still
damn good
and can compete in the NFC.
And, you know, when you kind of evaluate them and then think
about Michael Thomas being healthy in the field, you go.
Crap, they could be a player here. In this thing of Jamis
can stay healthy and keep progressing in that offense. So
it'll be
interesting to see where this goes for him.
We had mused at one point in the offseason about
the possibility of the Saints would just move on from. And when
they drafted Chris olave, I think some people thought that
as well, but he was one of the guys who restructured his
contract to help Mickey Loomis the GM of the team with this
annual effort every
year. They're in this cap mass and they wave the magic wand.
And,
and One of the, one of the guys in whose Direction they wave,
that magic wand was Michael Thomas. Restructure the deal.
There's no way they could
movement this point. He's going to be on the team this year.
The question is, what will he actually be doing? Will it be
cleared to play? How involved? Will he be?
And then where do we go from there in 2023? As he's getting
toward the final, two years of his contract, fifteen and
a half million dollar base salary next year, which was a lot when
they signed him.
It's kind if he's playing. Well, that's a bargain at this
point. When you consider what other guys are may quote. So
right, still a lot to be figured out between the Saints
and Michael Thomas and
the Saints and Jameis, Winston, and his knee. But I feel better
about Winston after seeing that video, because I really do
think it's the brace more than anything else.