Antoine Winfield Didn’t Say “No”
September 5th, 2023
Feeling good.
Joe is stoked. Five days and Bucs football kicks off for the 2023 season! How awesome is that?
So with Bucs coach Todd Bowles trying an unorthodox training camp schedule (three days of practice and a day off, rinse and repeat) to try to keep guys healthy, it mostly seems to have worked.
One guy who didn’t make it through training camp unscathed was Pro Bowl safety Antoine Winfield. Before he messed up his calf, Winfield was having a dynamite camp.
So yesterday at practice, Winfield was asked if he could suit up Sunday in his hometown of Minneapolis. Winfield didn’t say, “No.”
“I feel good,” Winfield said. “Every day I’m getting better, so it felt great today.”
Of course, Joe didn’t expect Winfield to tip off his status. But since he was upbeat, Joe is hopeful.
With all-world receiver Justin Jefferson on the field, the Bucs need all hands on deck in the secondary, including a guy like Winfield who missed just one tackle last season.
“You have to know where he is at all times,” Winfield said. “He’s that guy, so we have to make sure we can contain him as much as possible.”
Let’s cross our fingers Winfield is there to help slow Jefferson down.
Join Ira Kaufman and Bucs fans on opening day at the Big Storm Brewing Co. taproom in Clearwater, on 49th Street just south of Ulmerton Road.
Beautiful covered patio with strong sightlines and audio. Indoors, too! Cocktails, a great menu, Florida’s best craft beer and more.
SEE YOU SUNDAY!
Huge covered and comfortable outdoor patio at Big Storm Brewing Co. in Clearwater.
Click on through to check out their website.
Fun time ahead.
Indoors too! Joe highly recommends the Nashville Hot Chicken sandwich and fries.
September 5th, 2023 at 4:50 am
Winfield … “He’s that guy, so we have to make sure we can contain him as much as possible.”
There’s no question that Jefferson is THAT GUY for the Vikings. Last season he was targeted 184 times, caught 128 for 1809 yards. And of those 128 catches, 8 were for TDs & 80 were for 1st downs. That’s impressive.
Interestingly, his Average Depth of Target (ADOT) was 10.1 yards. His Yards Before Contact per Reception was a nice 9.3 yards (he got 1185 yards before being hit), then he added another 4.9 yards average after each reception (another 624 yards after 1st contact). Those are incredible numbers.
But if we have to rely on our safeties to stop him, we’re in trouble, unless it’s after the catch of course. Davis, Dean & Izien better be the ones corralling him.
September 5th, 2023 at 6:43 am
If he can’t go we’re in big trouble. Also haven’t heard a think about Kancey’s status. Last year it was the hamstrings. This year its the calves.
September 5th, 2023 at 6:46 am
Can’t wait for Todd’s specialty defense, the cover zero (as in cover no one but don’t blitz, either – make sure Diva White doesn’t understand the call but makes up for it by not communicating to his teammates).
September 5th, 2023 at 7:09 am
“Cover Zero” defense. LOL! That’s the best zinger since Lovie’s “Cover Who” D.
September 5th, 2023 at 7:15 am
Just a shame that Winfield even needs to be asked if he’s hurt…again.
September 5th, 2023 at 7:46 am
Dave – what was your “specialty defense” that not only won a Super Bowl, but totally humiliated the MVP of the league and the Super Bowl favorite, the 2020-2021 Kansas City Chiefs?
What was your “specialty defense” that was the 5th ranked defense in the league in 2021, helping to produce the best won-loss record in the league that season?
What was your “specialty defense” that despite having an off year with a roster full of old and slow guys, still managed to rank #13 in the league, despite the offense being non-productive falling all the way to #25 in the league?
Oh, didn’t think so. Then you are in no position to mock Coach Bowles’s defenses … none whatsoever.
September 5th, 2023 at 7:48 am
Let’s call Dave Pear’s knowledge of NFL defenses what it is – the “knows zero” brain trust.
September 5th, 2023 at 8:01 am
Winny can’t make it out of camp cupcake without getting injured. Good luck making it through a 17 game season. If he can’t, one less player we’ll have to worry about extending.
September 5th, 2023 at 8:09 am
Duane, your blind loyalty is admirable. You can give Todd a participation trophy. And, in case you missed the Super Bowl win against the Chiefs, they had a bartender at LT and a waitress at RT. Mahomes hit receivers in the face mask with about four passes. In the beginning of the playoff run, Todd almost lost to the WTF Heinekens in the wild card game, and finally woke up from his coma in the Saints playoff game to realize that Brees couldn’t throw more than 6 yards downfield. The Packers were a Lafleur choke away from coming back.
Oh, and that was three years ago. The Todd era began with his Cover Zero genius against the Rams, depriving us all of a shot at back to back Lombardi trophies. But at least he went on to saddle Tom Brady with the only losing season he ever experienced in his life.
Keep your spirit, though, it’s totally based on wishful thinking.
September 5th, 2023 at 9:20 am
Ugh. The 2021 Rams loss. I re-watched that Kupp play enough to wanna puke but my big takeaway was poor communication. Maybe a blitz call against Stafford wasn’t wise but we’ll never know because we had guys just standing around (and even looking toward the sideline) after the snap. I think it was LVD who was in no-mans-land in the middle of the field looking like a statue for a few seconds after the snap.
Had he blitzed up the middle (or knew he was supposed to) it might have disrupted Stafford’s timing or vision to the middle of the field, which is where Kupp caught the ball. We were out of timeouts (which may be why players were looking to the sideline during the confusion expecting time to be called. Who knows).
It was a debacle any way you slice it. Spilled milk. You hate to see mistakes at critical points in a big game, but they can happen. Just ask Pete Carroll.
September 5th, 2023 at 9:24 am
Uh-oh…
If Winfield doesn’t play Cousins and Jefferson are going to carve up the Bucs like a Thanksgiving Day turkey.
September 5th, 2023 at 9:36 am
if AW is not completely healthy, let him sit. a long season with a healthy AW will have better results than him reinjuring himself game 1. JJ can be stopped with a dominating pass rush, so if Kirk has all day to throw, Winfield won’t matter, plus he would probably working on the TE in some of the scenarios Vikes would set up and they have a pretty good one
September 5th, 2023 at 10:01 am
I am expecting a lot of “mis communication” from the secondary and a lot of wide open receivers from the opposition this year. Blows me away how awful are secondary is in zone coverage.
September 5th, 2023 at 10:20 am
At this point it almost seems fair to label AWJ as injury-prone. Dude seems to be constantly hurt and missing games. Not sure I’d be in a huge rush to give him $18M a year if that trend continues this season.
September 5th, 2023 at 10:27 am
We are thin all over the defense. We need him and all the back end to stay healthy all season.
Go Bucs!