Crazy stat illustrates difference between Jameis Winston, Drew Brees

The New Orleans Saints do not yet know if Jameis Winston will lead them to the same heights that Drew Brees did during the former quarterback’s Hall of Fame career, but it took just one game for them to show the NFL how their offense has changed.

Simply put, Winston is capable of doing things that Brees could not. That became evident when Winston completed a 55-yard touchdown pass to Deonte Harris in Sunday’s 38-3 win over the Green Bay Packers. The pass traveled 50 yards in the air. According to ESPN’s Paul Hembekides, Brees never had a completed pass that traveled 50 or more yards in the air in more than 9,000 career attempts with the Saints.

This touchdown pass from Jameis Winston traveled 50 yards in the air.

Drew Brees attempted 9,421 passes for the Saints and never had one of those. pic.twitter.com/wTRbjtD9um

— Paul Hembekides (@PaulHembo) September 16, 2021

What does that mean? Very little, obviously. Brees may have never completed a pass that traveled 50 or more yards in the air, but his 80,358 passing yards are more than any other quarterback in NFL history. He also ranks first with 7,142 completions and second with 571 touchdown passes. Most importantly, he won a Super Bowl.

Brees knows Winston plays differently from him, and he even cracked a great joke about that during Week 1. Brees also knows he is the greatest quarterback in Saints history, as does head coach Sean Payton.

Winston may be able to do some things Brees couldn’t, but there are far more things that Brees accomplished that Winston never has. The 27-year-old is hoping to close the gap as much as possible.