Jameis Winston: Buccaneers QB Is The Real Deal

ByPhil Naegely|

While Andy Dalton struggled to impress, rookie quarterback Jameis Winston was solid his time on the field. It looked like his playing time was cut short due to an ankle injury, but the team denied any injury and Winston looked just fine when he ran into the tunnel at the half.

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Winston threw for 90 yards, while completing eight of 13 passes. In addition, he completed a one-yard rushing touchdown en route to the Buccaneers’ 25-11 win over the Bengals. Despite the many pundits who felt Winston wouldn’t succeed in the NFL, the Florida State product is showing he has what it takes to find success in the NFL. Granted it’s hard to predict how his rookie season will go based on the preseason, but he isn’t disappointing just yet.

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For a moment it looked like there was an injury to Winston, but that panned out just to be a false alarm. He was pulled because the coaching staff “had seen enough,” Lovie Smith told ESPN during the game. This goes to show how well they thought Winston preformed.

This is good news as Winston should see considerably more time in the Buccaneers’ week three game against the Cleveland Browns and end on the road with the Miami Dolphins. Don’t expect to see much, if any, of Winston against the Dolphins, but it will be another good test for Winston and the rest of the offense against the Browns, who have only given up 31 points through two preseason games.

So far Winston is connecting well with Mike Evans and his other targets. He’s showing his potential on the field and starting to flourish as an NFL quarterback. It’s too soon to really judge how his rookie campaign will end, but he is laying a solid foundation to build on as the Buccaneers move closer to their opening game.

One thing to watch as the team prepares to face the Browns is the severity of Evans’s injury. If he can’t go, then Winston’s ability to adjust will be on display and how he fares without his primary passing target. It’s unknown how bad Evans’ hamstring injury is, but off-the-bone type of injuries are delicate when handling them.

Winston is the clear starting quarterback in Tampa Bay and seems ready for his first regular season NFL start on against the Tennessee Titans on September 13th at 4:25 Eastern. Winston is preforming like a first overall NFL Draft pick should, but we’ve only seen him play in two games. Preseason games are great to evaluate players, but anything is possible once the regular season kicks off.

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