Bucs' Jameis Winston has earned team's respect with preparation, play
Given all of the off-the-field drama that enveloped Jameis Winston in college, there were more than a few people in NFL circles who wondered as the draft approached whether the supremely talented quarterback was a big bust waiting to happen.
Not so fast.
Heading down the stretch run of his rookie season, Winston’s steady improvement has made the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ decision to select the former Florida State star with the No. 1 pick overall — rather than Marcus Mariota — appear as the type of rock-solid investment that can turn around a franchise.
Sometimes, you never really know. NFL personnel people have told me for years that one of the more difficult things about their job is to try to project how a young player will respond with status, intense scrutiny and, of course, money in his pocket.
Consider Johnny Manziel. He finally got to the point where Cleveland Browns coach Mike Pettine pegged him to start the final six games of his second season. And then he blows that opportunity with bye week shenanigans that eradicated whatever trust they had developed.
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Think about Robert Griffin III and Colin Kaepernick. After starting hot, they fizzled amid so many questions about how they went about their business.
Now Winston, whose team seeks to win a third consecutive game on Sunday at Indianapolis, is on that big stage.
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“His love of the game has sustained him,” former Bucs quarterback Shaun King, now a local radio host in Tampa, told USA TODAY Sports. “Look at RG3, Manziel and Kaepernick. They love the celebrity more than the process of being a quarterback. With Jameis, it’s the other way around.”
Winston is just getting started; he’s yet to produce his first 300-yard game in the NFL. In a romp at Philadelphia last weekend, though, he tied an NFL rookie record with five TD passes. And already, some teammates are declaring that he’s done some things like a five-year veteran.
During the draft process, Winston’s football IQ was overshadowed by the attention focused on off-the-field matters. Winston’s college career was shrouded in a rape accusation (he wasn’t charged). Then there was the crab legs incident at a local supermarket and an episode where he yelled a vulgar phrase at the student union building. Maturity questions persisted.
But the Bucs knew that something else might ultimately determine whether he can hack it in the NFL. Winston — whose tremendous recall is said to be bolstered by a photographic memory — has such a passion for the X’s and O’s that he’s been compared to Peyton Manning in that regard. Earlier this year, Bucs offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter told me he was blown away by Winston’s football mind during the evaluation process, and that he was even more impressed with how the quarterback mastered a complex offense at Florida State.
This week, Bucs coach Lovie Smith, mindful of the long study hours the rookie is putting in, called Winston “a football junkie.”
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For a guy who’s had off-the-field issues, that’s the ultimate compliment.
One of the best barometers of his progression on the NFL learning curve, though, rests with the numbers. After throwing four picks against Carolina in Week 4, Winston had committed eight turnovers in his first four games. In six games since, he’s had just two turnovers, with a TD-to-INT ratio of 9-2.
For all that the Bucs have done to protect the rookie — like using jumbo formations with a six-man offensive line more than any team in the NFL, and feeding Doug Martin in the running game — winning often comes down to limiting mistakes.
Winston doesn’t have to throw for 300 to win, as long as he isn’t giving the ball away.
That was the biggest on-the-field concern before the draft about Winston, who threw way too many picks last year at Florida State. Now, after a sluggish start on that front, he has the look of a changed quarterback.
“You don’t generally see the type of improvement he’s had during the season,” said King, who came off the bench for an injured Trent Dilfer to finish off a playoff drive in his rookie season. “Usually, it happens in the offseason, when you’ve had a chance to break it down with the coaches and you’ve been able to look over everything. The fact that he’s been able to do it in-season is amazing.”
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The kid demonstrated a certain level of preparedness at Philadelphia, when the radio headsets went dead on the Bucs sideline during their first series, cutting off Koetter’s play-calling communication with his prized rookie for a short time.
“When the coach-to-quarterback system works, it’s the greatest invention in the world,” Koetter said. “When it doesn’t work, it’s heart attack time. We have a wristband that we can use, but that play clock is running fast so it’s just so much better when it’s running like it’s supposed to.”
No sweat. They were working off a script for the early part of the game, and Winston called the plays and operated like nothing happened. His first pass, and first completion, to tight end Cameron Brate, came off a run-pass option that set a tone for a historic performance.
“Leave it to a quarterback to pick the pass over the run,” Koetter said, “but it worked out good.”
Other items of interest as Week 12 rolls along…
Who’s hot: Carson Palmer. A year after his season was derailed by a torn ACL (and nerve damage to his throwing wing), the 35-year-old Cardinals quarterback is better than ever in triggering the NFL’s No. 1-ranked offense. Palmer heads to San Francisco leading the league with 27 passing TDs and a 108.6 efficiency rating. He’s been so consistent, with seven 300-yard games and six contests this season with at least three TDs. And the past two weeks provided further validation: the Cardinals put up a combined 73 points in back-to-back games against the NFL’s No. 1- and No.2-ranked scoring defenses (Seattle, Cincinnati). With the division crown already in reach, the biggest question is whether Palmer – now scaling back on his number of throws in practice – will hold up for the long haul of a potentially deep playoff run.
Pressure’s on: Mike McCoy. Taking an NFL-longest six-game losing streak on the trip to Jacksonville, the walls are seemingly closing in on the Chargers coach. Two seasons after winning a first-round playoff game, the Chargers (2-8) are now in the running for the first pick in the NFL draft and there’s buzz about whether McCoy will survive. Besides, bad football is no way to sell a team while trying generate excitement in a new market. That’s why McCoy’s status may be even shakier than the results on the field. If the Chargers land in Los Angeles, installing a new field general might be viewed as an essential part of the marketing plan.
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Key matchup: Big Ben vs. The Legion of Boom. Seattle’s star-studded secondary probably won’t deter Ben Roethlisberger from taking a few shots down the field. After all, Carson Palmer stung the NFL’s No. 2 pass defense for 363 yards and 3 TDs. And nobody has been more lethal this season with deep passing impact than the Steelers quarterback. It will be interesting to see whether Seattle assigns Richard Sherman – who has been charged to exclusively cover the opponent’s top threat more this season than in the past -- to shadow Antonio Brown. Let’s hope so. That would be a treat to watch, especially against the backdrop of two tough, proud teams desperate for a win to fuel playoff hopes.
Rookie watch: Tevin Coleman. With the Falcons needing to stop their season from skidding off the playoff track, the third-round running back from Indiana has some huge production to try to account for in filling in for Devonta Freeman -- the versatile weapon who ranks second in the NFL (to Julio Jones) in yards from scrimmage, but will miss the big showdown against Minnesota while in concussion protocol. Coleman (who has had spot duty since starting the first two games as an injury fill-in) will undoubtedly focus on protecting the football after being reminded all week of his lost fumble after replacing an injured Freeman in last weekend’s loss to the Colts.
Next man up: Dennis Allen. Sean Payton, in his 10th year as Saints coach, now has his fifth D-coordinator. Yet as Allen steps in Rob Ryan, it marks the first time a switch was made during the season. The writing has been on the wall for months, after Payton added the former Raiders coach last spring and provided him one of the coveted offices with a view on the coaches’ wing at Saints’ headquarters. The product (probably) can’t get any worse. New Orleans heads into Sunday’s game at Houston ranked last in the league for yards (424.3) and points allowed (31.5), threatening to eclipse the NFL-record futility exhibited by Steve Spagnuolo’s unit with the Saints in 2012. Given mental and communication miscues that have stung the D, Allen will have the same type of mandate from Payton that Ryan couldn’t deliver on: Simplify the schemes.
My road to Super Bowl 50 goes through…Denver. So much for another installment of Tom Brady vs. Peyton Manning. But what a test for the lanky Brock Osweiler. Winning in Chicago on his 25th birthday was one thing. In his second NFL start, subbing for an injured Manning, Osweiler merely has to foil a Bill Belichick game plan and knock the Patriots from the dwindling ranks of the undefeated. Of course, he wouldn’t have to do it alone. The stout Broncos defense (No. 1 for fewest yards allowed, fewest passing yards and in collecting sacks) is the wrong unit for Brady’s injury-depleted unit to face about now. And if Denver can mount a rushing game again, after Gary Kubiak raved last week that Osweiler’s bootlegs and movement after taking snaps from under center impacted the running game, the pressure is reduced significantly. Still wanting a fix of mega quarterbacks? Check out the excellent, in-depth book written by veteran NFL writer Gary Myers that was recently released, Brady vs. Manning: The untold story of the rivalry that transformed the NFL (Crown Archetype, $26).
If the playoffs were today… Kansas City would be in. With a four-game winning streak, Andy Reid’s squad (5-5) provides a fresh reminder of why it can be foolish to write off some teams after only a few weeks. Still, the Chiefs are surging without Jamaal Charles (torn ACL, gone for the year), proof of what can happen when a team doesn’t beat itself. During the winning streak, the Chiefs haven’t committed a single turnover. The Bills (5-5) are pushing for the playoffs, too, which is why Sunday’s game at Arrowhead might become a tiebreaker factor. Then again, the Chiefs already have one break in their favor: one of the NFL’s easiest schedules. After Buffalo, each of the Chiefs’ remaining opponents are currently carrying a losing record, with a combined mark of 11-29.
Stomach for an upset: Giants at Washington. The coast to an NFC East title seems rather clear for Eli and Co., especially with the implosion of the Eagles and the gloom in Dallas with a re-fractured collarbone for Tony Romo. But the Giants (5-5) have lost four games this season when leading in the fourth quarter. So it’s not just a matter of whether they will finish games, but also if they will finish a season. Washington (4-6) is just a game back, and would be an even bigger threat if it can play all of its games at FedEx Field. The Burgundy and Gold has carried on with a Jekyll and Hyde complex: 4-1 at home, 0-5 away from Greater D.C. The Giants, bringing the NFL’s worst-ranked pass defense, better be wary of Kirk Cousins. At home, Cousins has completed 75.7% of his throws, with a 10-2 TD-to-INT ratio and 112.8 pass efficiency rating. In road games, the numbers read: 61.9%, 5-8, 69.8.
Did you notice? Teddy Bridgewater made his first NFL start in Week 4 against the Falcons, when he passed for 317 yards in a 41-28 victory. As the Vikings quarterback gears up to see Atlanta again, the 317 yards remains his career high.
Stat’s the fact: Colts quarterback Matt Hasselbeck, 40, heads into Sunday’s game against Tampa Bay with a chance to match Warren Moon and Brett Favre as only quarterbacks in NFL history to win four consecutive starts after their 40th birthdays.