Todd Bowles Is Key To Antoine Winfield Value
May 21st, 2024
Antoine Winfield reacts on radio.
So the NFL’s highest paid defensive back made a visit to SiriusXM NFL Radio yesterday.
Safety Antoine Winfield Jr. has been patrolling the Bucs’ defensive backfield for four years, including his temporary (failed?) stint at nickel back during the 2022 season.
While Winfield is a tireless worker and a skilled playmaker, he took a moment to mention that private mentoring meetings with Todd Bowles have been a difference-maker for him dating back to his rookie year.
Winfield reminisced about Bowles telling him early in his first training camp that the starting safety job was his, and about Bowles giving him great insight into the position Bowles himself played.
Co-host Pat Kirwan, the former Jets linebackers coach and personnel director, asked Winfield an interesting question about whether he feels teams scheme away from him to lessen his impact.
They can’t, Winfield replied.
“Coach Bowles schemes it up so well that there’s no real way to like take me out of the game because I’m in the middle of the field sometimes. I’m down in the box. I’m blitzing. And I’m doing all different things and moving around so much that it’s it’s kind of hard to just avoid me,” he said. “So that’s one thing that I love about playing in this defense.”
Joe will be interested to see how the Bucs defense changes this year with the return of safety Jordan Whitehead, who replaces Ryan Neal. It’s not lost on Joe that Neal, at 28 years old, remains a man without a team.
And yeah, more than a few times teams schemed away from Winfield and put a bull’s-eye on Neal.
May 21st, 2024 at 9:04 am
It’s going to easier to flip coverage on the backend with Whitehead back. As a Jet he had a whole bunch of time playing the deep middle/half of the field and got to bud as a cover safety, we already he’s got a presence in the box.
What I’m curious to see, is whether or not the Nickel-Safety role it seems Bowles is trying to fill will be like how he used Deon Buchannon in Arizona & back in 2019 with us almost like a DB-ILB hybrid. Would explain our interest in Tykee Smith, or to some degree DeLoach as new additions to that candidate pool. We’ve still got guys like Izien & Maywheather on the roster to potential compete for that role.
We’ve got to get better defending passing attacks in the middle of the field and setting visual traps for QBs to throw into when they attack the middle of our defense. Forget finding out who the Mike is, who’s the 3rd safety because he’s either coming or sitting in traffic.
May 21st, 2024 at 9:23 am
Ryan Neal allowed a 91.2 cmp%, 5 TDs, and a perfect 158.3 QB Rating.
Whitehead is going to be an gigantic upgrade.
May 21st, 2024 at 9:37 am
Last Summer news from training camp was all about how much of an upgrade Neal was going to be. I remember quotes like he really understands the Safety position and is going to help the communication issues in the back end. And talk about how many plays he was making at the OTAs and TC. Then when the rubber hit the road and the real games started he was awful.
May 21st, 2024 at 9:41 am
Wow!! Why is that the first time I’m seeing those stats. Alot of people have been making a case against Ryan Neal. Joe said one important thing about it, that he is without a team. Says alot. But 91% completion ratio? Horrible. What were the other 9%, errant throws? Wow! But wait, as I read on further… 158.3 QBR. Isn’t that the perfect, highest QBR a quarterback can get? Wow! Starts to make you wonder about the coach not replacing him sooner. Nobody else better? I think we had a rookie safety. He couldn’t do better. Did he play Strong Safety, Weak Safety? I don’t profess to know the difference, that is why I’m asking. Did Merriwether, the name comes to me, play a different safety position or was Neal just better? A perfect QBR? 91% comp ratio? Come on. Is that the reason CJ Stroud marched down the field so easily on the last drive? Seems like we lost at least one other game similarly. Atlanta? Colts? Licht did his job though. Whitehead and the kid outta Georgia will surely turn a negative into a positive. Now if Bowels can tighten up the loose coverage and not play his CBs 9 yard off on 3rd and 5!!!
May 21st, 2024 at 9:55 am
Whitehead will give more freedom to Winfield. Bowles shouldn’t have to use that
Charmin soft zone as much with the CBs. Tykee may do some of the slot blitzing. If Braswell, YaYa, and Kancey add pressure, the backend will benefit.
May 21st, 2024 at 10:00 am
Stanglassman Says:
May 21st, 2024 at 9:37 am
Last Summer news from training camp was all about how much of an upgrade Neal was going to be. I remember quotes like he really understands the Safety position and is going to help the communication issues in the back end. And talk about how many plays he was making at the OTAs and TC. Then when the rubber hit the road and the real games started he was awful.
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Yep!! I remember the same
May 21st, 2024 at 10:25 am
I believe Ryan Neal followed Canales from Seattle here. He played decent enough to get an extended look but we should’ve replaced him with someone else on the depth chart mid-season. I know some of the younger guys got a lot of playing time but I guess none were consistent enough to take his spot full-time, which is weird as hell after looking at the stats of how bad he really was. I’m so happy we got Whitehead back!
May 21st, 2024 at 10:30 am
Letting Whitehead leave was one of Lichts worst decisions ever
May 21st, 2024 at 10:44 am
Agree with all here who are pointing out the value of Whitehead. He increases the value of Winfield by allowing Bowles to use him all over the field while Whitehead stays more at home.
Again one of my favorite all time players was Troy Palomalu. He was all over the field, and a real playmaker. Too much respect for Troy to anoint Winfield just yet but he’s just getting started. The next five years for Winfield could become HOF material. He’s on schedule at least and has shown the ability. AND Bowles is going to give him the opportunity, something not lost on Winfield!!
“I’m down in the box. I’m blitzing. And I’m doing all different things and moving around so much that it’s it’s kind of hard to just avoid me,” he said. “So that’s one thing that I love about playing in this defense.”
May 21st, 2024 at 10:59 am
“Letting Whitehead leave was one of Lichts worst decisions ever”
We legit just loaned him out to the Jets for two years and brought him back home. Now we’ve got a Pitt Panther at every level of our defense w/Whitehead, Kancey & Mr.Dennis
May 21st, 2024 at 11:05 am
Whitehead had those 3 picks against Josh Allen and it’s quite possible teams threw away from him the rest of the year. I agree he makes a HUGE difference. Even Ross said he was the GLUE of that SB winning defense. My concern will be KJ Britt in the middle of the field until I see how they play. If Tykee blankets TEs and they bracket guys like Laporta with Whitehead it could still work. If they figure out a way to isolate Britt, he will be the biggest pass coverage weakness.
May 21st, 2024 at 11:39 am
“If Tykee blankets TEs and they bracket guys like Laporta with Whitehead it could still work.”
Agree 100%
Still, I think there are a few other candidates that could carve out a niche role in our cover defense phases. Especially if the goal this season is to always have a NB option in the grass that can play in and out of the box w/o having to sub in/out on any down. We need to be alot better protecting the middle of the field in 2024
May 21st, 2024 at 11:44 am
We had to let Whitehead leave. We were working our way out of cap Hell, as you may recall, and we got out.
May 21st, 2024 at 12:17 pm
Concerning Ryan Neal…
I believe the reason he got So Much leeway was because he is or was engaged to Canales’ daughter.
I know that shouldn’t have anything to do with it but let’s be realistic about it. No Way he should have been left out there to continously hurt us but I guess that when you’re the OC’s son in law….. “Lots of Leeway”
I wonder how that relationship is working out these days???
May 21st, 2024 at 1:21 pm
Let’s hope Carolina gives him another chance and he plays as badly for them as he played for us.
May 21st, 2024 at 2:22 pm
Too bad most football players aren’t nearly as smart as Antoine. Maybe he can decipher Bowles calls and tell everyone what their assignments are, complete with the 3 options each with two variants, depending on opposing formation, personnel, situation, phase of the moon and level of volcanic activity in Iceland.