Antoine Winfield Jr. making strong impression at Buccaneers camp

Buccaneers rookie Antoine Winfield Jr. is pushing for a starting spot on defense.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers selected Antoine Winfield Jr. in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft with the 45th overall pick. Although safety was not a glaring need for the team, they felt his talent was too good to pass up.

Up to this point in training camp, Winfield has impressed the Buccaneers coaching staff and has shown an ability to pick up their defense quickly. The rookie seems poised to earn himself plenty of playing time and maybe even a starting role when the season kicks off on Sept. 13.

Already known for his versatility in college, the Buccaneers are aiming to take advantage of Winfield’s skillset variety during the upcoming season. The team has had him not only learning the safety position but they have had him learning their slot corner principles for potential usage in their nickel packages.

None of this is new for Winfield, who often played both safety positions while also covering the slot when he was at the University of Minnesota. The challenge for most rookies is just learning the difference in speed of the NFL game and the new concepts. Winfield has taken all of these new things in stride.

Antoine Winfield Jr. standing out in Buccaneers training camp

Despite his lack of size, Winfield was known for making plays in college. This is surely one of the things the Buccaneers saw in him on the second draft night. For head coach Bruce Arians, a playmaking safety is nothing new.

He was head coach when the Arizona Cardinals drafted Tyrann Mathieu in the third round and reaped the rewards. Once Mathieu had departed, the team drafted Budda Baker in 2017 and he just received the NFL’s richest contract for a safety.

Both safeties thrived in similar defensive systems to what the Buccaneers will be deploying Winfield in for 2020. Not so coincidentally, both Winfield and others have compared his game to both Mathieu and Baker.

Winfield has made the most of his opportunities in practice and has impressed when given a chance. He has shown the same ball-hawking instincts and capabilities he displayed in college at Minnesota.

Winfield had seven interceptions last season and he didn’t waste time causing turnovers at the Buccaneers training camp. Winfield caused a fumble during the team’s first practice in pads. He had even had the opportunity to work with the first team defense by the end of the day. According to Eduardo Encina of the Tampa Bay Times, Arians boasted after the session:

"“He’s an intelligent player. It’s not too big for him. He’ll be competing for a starting job quickly.”"

Indeed, Winfield received more opportunity when one of last year’s starting safeties Mike Edwards recently missed practice due to an eye infection. Winfield was able to show he had been absorbing all of the information given to him in position meetings and during his late-night studies. Once again, Arians was impressed with his play, via the team’s official website:

"“He just makes plays every day. He executes the defense, he has great instincts. You can’t stay out of practice very long [or] you’re going to get beat out by him.”"

It definitely feels like it is just a matter of time before Winfield is starting for the NFC title contender. His speed and versatility could be a much welcome contribution to the Buccaneers.

Although they have invested draft capital in the safety position over the last three drafts, Winfield may be the best of the group. His versatility means the team may be able to employ three safeties at once. For a coordinator who likes to attack and mix things up like Bowles prefers to do, Winfield must feel like a new toy.