NBA reporter Shams Charania weirdly breaks Saints bringing back Jameis Winston

The Athletic’s NBA insider Shams Charania was the first to the story on Jameis Winston 

Sometimes the saying is stick to sports. How about just stick to your own sport?

The New Orleans Saints have a greed to terms with quarterback Jameis Winston. Winston is set to return to the Bayou on a one-year deal worth $12 million.  Winston elected to take a chance on himself and learn from future Hall-of-Fame quarterback Drew Brees after five years of inconsistent play with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Naturally, everyone wants to know who was the first to break the story. Was it ESPN’s Adam Schefter? How about NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport? Could it have been a local reporter down in New Orleans?

Nope. Instead, the first to the news was The Athletic’s insider Sham Charania. And for those wondering why that name is unfamiliar, it’s because that name is best known for covering the NBA trades rather than the ones on the gridiron.

Naturally, Rapoport couldn’t help be be a tad jealous he beat him to the punch.

Is there a quarterback battle in the Bayou?

Sunday marked the end of an era for the Saints as Brees announced his retirement. Exactly 15 years from the date he signed with the team, the 41-year-old hang up the cleats for the last time officially heading into the next chapter of his life.

The attention now turns to Sean Payton and what he will do to replace the all-time great. New Orleans has two options, one of course being Winston. The other? Taysom Hill.

And yes, one of these two will be the starter after the recent deals that have been made.

On Sunday, Hill agreed to a four-year, $160 million extension that could be all voidable before 2024. His 2021 earnings broken down are  a $9.686 million signing bonus, a $1.439 million guaranteed roster bonus and a $1.034 million guaranteed base salary.

Should all those come to pass, the deal is basically a total of $12.16 million for next season.

There are reasons to believe that Winston is the best option for the Saints to win now. Despite playing in limited role in 2021, his touchdown pass in the NFC Divisional Round against the Buccaneers showed his growth as a deep ball passer and that his turnovers could be limited in the right system.

Brees is retired, a gadget player could be the Saints’ starter and an NBA insider is breaking NFL news. There’s a joke to be made here, but 2021 already has enough of them going on.