Why Is Jameis Playing Well?
October 6th, 2019
Big test today.
You know it and Joe knows it. We all expect America’s Quarterback, Pro Bowler Jameis Winston, to have a bad game sooner or later.
The real question is, will it be sooner or later?
That may sound harsh, but it has been the career pattern for Jameis. He will some good games and then he will have a clunker. Trying to minimize the clunkers has always been the issue.
Albert Breer of theMMQB decided to do some digging on why Jameis is arguably the hottest quarterback the past 10 quarters. Breer talked to defensive coaches who have faced the Bucs this year (it seems one might have been from the Rams).
In short, the opposing coaches believe Jameis’ teammates are stepping up for a change and that in turn is raising Jameis’ play.
I touched base with a couple of defensive coaches who’ve faced Winston this year, and a key emerged in what the Bucs have been able to do for him through four games—they’ve created clean pockets and clean looks, which allow for his talent for throwing the ball to shine through. Arians, for his part, says emphasizing getting the ball out of Winston’s hands faster and more judiciously has been vital to making it come off that way.
Imagine that? Jameis no longer has to be a one-man team. Those that bellyache about his won-loss record despite playing with the worst defense in the history of the NFL should take note.
So will Jameis be back next year? Bucco Bruce Arians in the same story gave no vote of confidence, even quipping he doesn’t know if Team Glazer wants him back next year.
Yes, Jameis is playing better. That’s great. Now can he sustain it? Today is a big test. A big test for the Bucs, a big test for Arians and a huge test for Jameis, which could have tens of millions of consequences.
It’s Saints-Bucs and Derrick Brooks is all over it with Sage JoeBucsFan.com columnist Ira Kaufman in this episode of TAMPA TWO. Enjoy it below, presented by Caldeco Air Conditioning & Heating. It’s another great production from The Identity Tampa Bay and Joe.
October 6th, 2019 at 5:37 am
Jay Miss usually plays well when he’s not running for his life but wtfdik
October 6th, 2019 at 6:31 am
I want so badly to say that if the OL can create holes in the run game and protect Jameis against that Rams front 4, they can do it against anybody!!
But then I remember the Cleveland game preseason and think, Dante Fowler WAS hurt etc etc.
Of course preseason is for a reason and it’s not unheard of for an OL to start to gel.
4 of this 5 have played A LOT of games together and with good coaching and Cappa playing better, I actually think the Bucs win this game today.
All I know is Apple is gonna have a bad day. LMAO
October 6th, 2019 at 6:40 am
With brees out we have a chance … play balanced football and we should get a WIN
October 6th, 2019 at 6:40 am
Worst defense in NFL is clearly hyperbole.
Biggest difference in JW3 play is the Bucs are a run-first team, according to the coach himself.
October 6th, 2019 at 7:24 am
If we execute well Jameis should have the edge over Bridgewater’s short game.
But the challenge will be finding ways to keep Jameis protected and getting the ball out quickly. Saints have been able to disrupt our running game and passing
game in prior years. Jameis has to get the ball out fast and accurately. Last week he showed that ability , he just needs to keep it up. Our offense should have the edge over a Bridgewater led team, but we have to defeat their defense which only allowed 10 points against Dallas last week.
October 6th, 2019 at 8:02 am
Don’t ever based how good a QB is on the TEAMS record. It’s a team game and if Tom brady played here in Tampa trust me he would have never won a super bowl. They All need to play well to win period!!!
October 6th, 2019 at 8:04 am
Your head coach and OC said when they first arrived that we must play better around jameis. They said we cant be down by 30, cant miss field goals, have to run better and protect better. The DC in this article is only validating what was told to the haters when the new coaching staff first arrived. Some just didn’t want to listen smdh
October 6th, 2019 at 8:05 am
Imo the 3 most important things a QB needs to be successful is 1. Good offensive line play 2. A solid running game 3. A competent defense…
So far we’ve gotten that this year which has resulted in Jameis playing well. I also have to give Jameis some credit, with the exception being week 1 he’s doing a great job of being patient and letting the game come to him…
I’m loving Jameis the game manager; there will be times where he’ll need to put his cape on and play Superman but it shouldn’t be something that needs to be done every Sunday as long as the team continues to play complementary football…
Jameis has alot of games under his belt in this league, but he’s still a very young QB; I love his work-ethic, guts, and effort…he’s a play-maker by nature, but there’s a very thin line between making a play and forcing some BS…he just needed to understand when to let a play die and move on to the next one, and believe this coaching staff is getting that through his thick skull…I can live with the occasional brain fart as long as it isn’t happening frequently through out the course of a game or every week…
Keep it up Jameis, Go beat those stinkin Saints…
October 6th, 2019 at 8:37 am
Ok. So first time let it slide but second time I have to make a correction. This goes to speak how the Bucs play affects the perception of how Winston plays. Jameis has played well 12 quarters in a row. First half vs Panthers his stat line was 11/14 for 146 yards, 1 TD and 0 INTs. Since week 1 second in rating and yards to only Mahomes. That’s 3 straight games. Not just the 10 quarters thing.
October 6th, 2019 at 8:44 am
“No one
Absolutely no one knows more about JW3 development than
My Dad
Better QB coaching causing decisiveness
JW3 has clearing been taught better presnap keys and reading defense coaching
He isn’t throwing to double coverage but going directly to the 2nd/alternate route with single coverage
*Also BA don’t like seam routes”
Son of Kobe Faker
October 6th, 2019 at 8:45 am
Jameis played a game in his rookie year that he literally put the team on his back and won it. I can’t recall the opponent but they weren’t cupcakes. I sure would love to listen to that (smart) fire today. Run Payton’s cheating nose in the turf, JW. Go Bucs!!
October 6th, 2019 at 8:46 am
Well damn what are the odds of a quarterback with a clean pocket playing well lol wow that is ground breaking stuff. I’m sure Brady and Rodgers and Brees appreciate others playing well around them also duh Albert did ya really need defensive coaches to tell you that?
October 6th, 2019 at 8:50 am
I think with Jameis it’s all about habits. He has a habit of having clunkers. He has a habit of compounding mistakes. I think the best sign from him was in the NY game, he was able to put us on the 9 AFTER throwing the int. Same thing in LA. He throws a pick-6 and comes back the next drive and moves the ball with confidence. He’s not turning an interception into 3, much like he did in week 1.
The longer he goes without a clunker, I think the chances he has one goes down.
October 6th, 2019 at 8:52 am
Being able to run the ball, and not having to over come big leads of our opponents. We had the worst defense in the league, Dirk would defer giving the ball to start the game, boom, down 7 nothing. We were usually playing catch up the rest of the game. Now we often take the lead first, and we have a defense that gets take aways instead of handing out TD’s like they were Halloween candy. Jameis can now get positive yards when he hands off instead of 2nd, and 12, he has 2nd, and 6, huge difference. We’re a better coached, more complete team, he doesn’t have to try and win games by himself. Quite simple.
October 6th, 2019 at 8:53 am
OneBuc55,
Excellent post!
There’s was a statement from both Arians and Leftwich early in their tenure.
It was regarding the need for Winston to understand situational football. Another statement made after the voluntary workouts was, Winston’s long hours at the facility were counterproductive .
I mention both because Winston’s Mr. Hyde mode has some relationship with the two things above. If that’s correct, we’re going to see Mr Winston moving steadily to the point where no one is asking these questions. He will be a player who is reliable and consistent. Basically, He’s going to be the guy who we hoped he was when He was drafted #1.
October 6th, 2019 at 9:03 am
Hodad,
Every Coach 99.9% of the time defers. Last year when we lost the coin toss and started on offense, the team usually scored. But…….the defense would just lay down and the score was either tied or we were down by 4.
Point is, deferring is smart. Fans may not think so, but coaches do and the have metrics to bolster the case. It’s not a big deal and it hasn’t changed the season. Much like all the new focus on time of possession. It isn’t important to start the game.
October 6th, 2019 at 9:04 am
The Patriots gave up I think 1 touchdown the hold season so far. Brady has always played on good if not great teams. Every team he has played with the defense was good. They may give up yards but they don’t give up many points. Go look how many times a team put up 30 points or 40 points against the Patriots since Brady been there. Now that’s a stat that no national media or any sports writer or any other fan wants to talk about when it comes to Brady . That’s the main reason why the Patriots have been winning but they give Brady all the credit cause of this false narrative about the quarterback position that’s being the most important they want to you guys to believe that false narrative but I never did and I never will . And one more thing some will still tell you that defense wins championships not quarterbacks!!!! Go bucs……
October 6th, 2019 at 9:18 am
Well he is actually been accurate pat 3 games and first gane I give him a pass for new offense, first game and live bullets. Hope he doesn’t have a clunker we can’t afford it
October 6th, 2019 at 9:27 am
Joe..I heard three factors… clean pocket..yes..you spent quite a bit of time on that. But what about getting the ball out faster and being more judicious in his play. Those are equally important, and you seemed to just pass over them. Seems to me all three are keys. Would you like to give us more information on the later two?
October 6th, 2019 at 9:46 am
It is still early. The improvements, consistency and upward trend must continue. It appears that he and the offense has an ever-improving grasp on the new playbook. However, he singlehandedly lost the S.F. game with 2 pick 6s (there should have been 3) and 3 picks total (there should have been 5). He threw another pick 6 last week late in the game, up by two scores that, should have never been thrown.
I optimistically expect the improved play to continue and the coaching no doubt is a large part of the that. Jameis has strung together 10 & 12 good quarters in the past and each time he does, we prematurely believe that he has “turned the corner”. Ten quality quarters does not a franchise QB make! The giving away of points MUST STOP! String together GAMES then, we become winners and I, and those in my camp, will stop being “haters”.
Almost forgot: Don’t touch ANYONE!
October 6th, 2019 at 9:48 am
The offensive line has been the key all along. Give Winston time and a decent run game for play action and he will eat you up.
October 6th, 2019 at 9:51 am
Thanks TNew! Not sure which Joe keeps typing that gibberish about quarters. I would say all three games he has played well, but leaving out an 11-14 1 TD no interception half is just lazy reporting. Also, If you want to be hyper critical about it, I would argue it has only been 8 straight quarters of good play. He did almost nothing in the 3rd quarter of the Giants game and very little until the end in the fourth quarter as well. To have our local writer’s being so off in regards to a team they cover day in and day out is annoying.
October 6th, 2019 at 10:36 am
32-28 Bucs win
October 6th, 2019 at 10:58 am
Here’s to hoping the bad game we’re all expecting happened to be week 1.
October 6th, 2019 at 11:06 am
@D-Rome
LOL I was going to post the exact same thing!
October 6th, 2019 at 11:35 am
I see many great technical football answers and I agree with most.
But for me it’s just fundamental…existential even. Two thoughts for JW’s success.
First…all guys and especially testosterone laden superstar football players mature individually at different ages. JW has simply grown up in that fundamental existential area. He seems to have conquered the demons of his youth and (You fill in the blank) habits that plagued his personal life off the field.
JW is now a man. As Lovie used to say…it’s as simple as that.
Secondly…QB’s develop at different rates on the field. There is NO doubt that being a #1 pick and ending up on the worst team…hence the #1 pick…has made JW’s career much, much more difficult. If you wish to see really intense analysis of how long it takes for an NFL QB to become a star….
http://www.footballperspective.com/how-long-does-it-take-great-quarterbacks-to-break-out/
Some obvious comparisons…In the case of Bradshaw/Aikman/Testaverde, the extenuating circumstances were landing with terrible teams;
But I think another apt comparison or perhaps better stated a player JW MIGHT one day equal…albeit with a different style and skill set is Warren Moon.
Moon is in some ways the best comparison, by virtue of landing with an absolutely horrible Oilers team. His numbers were not impressive during his first three years, but beginning in year four, he began building the groundwork for his Hall of Fame career.
And finally for those who really wish to see what might happen the number one name on this list for me…Rich Gannon.
Gannon sat his first three years, and then generally performed as a below-average quarterback during his next three seasons as the Viking starter. He then went to Washington and struggled in 1993, and missed the 1994 season with a shoulder injury. He sat on the bench in Kansas City in ’95 and ’96, but played well in five starts in 1997. He kept up his solid play in ’98 over ten starts, before going to Oakland and making the first of four straight Pro Bowls at the age of 34 in 1999.
October 6th, 2019 at 12:22 pm
No reason to expect a bad game. Why would you?
I’m ready to see our team shut down that who-dat BS. It’s almost as if we’ve never beaten these guys from some of the posts above. They’re one missed field goal better than us as it stands today.
Y’all love Vegas odds right? Last I looked it’s Bucs +3. So an away game and it’s basically a toss up.
October 6th, 2019 at 1:36 pm
It’s just a phase, he’ll grow out of it.