Where does New York Giants star Jameis Winston rank among the backup quarterbacks in the league heading into 2026?
Sports Illustrated’s Gilberto Manzano ranks Winston No. 4 out of all 32 backup quarterbacks for the upcoming season.
Winston is an aggressive gunslinger with the ball in his hands and a motivational speaker when he’s not slinging it. Not only do his pregame speeches go viral on social media, he showed last year against the Lions that he still has plenty to offer as a quarterback, lighting up Detroit’s secondary for 366 yards, two touchdowns and one interception in the Week 12 overtime loss.
Winston’s reckless ways got him in trouble as a starter for the Buccaneers, but his play style is better suited as a backup. In 2019, Winston led the league in passing yards (5,109) and interceptions (30). Since that memorable season, Winston has been a backup for the Saints, Browns and Giants.
Winston still has the talent to be a starter in the NFL. The former No. 1 overall pick from 2015 recorded 567 passing yards and two passing touchdowns across two starts last season.
There are not many quarterbacks in the NFL, starters or backups, who possess the arm talent that Winston has. Turnovers have been the bane of his existence in the league. Nevertheless, in the unfortunate event that Giants starter Jaxson Dart goes down with an injury at any point next season, New York will have every reason to like its chances to win with Winston leading the offense. He will just need to take care of the ball to get the job done.
This article originally appeared on Giants Wire: New York Giants’ Jameis Winston ranked among NFL’s best backup QBs
Reporting by Matt Legros, Giants Wire / Giants Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Matt Legros, Giants Wire | USA TODAY Network
