Not Ready For Primetime
December 19th, 2016
Primetime is bad time for Jameis.
When Saturday Night Live debuted, a show Joe honestly hasn’t watched in decades, during the opening credits the cast was introduced as the “Not Ready For Primetime Players.”
Thus far in his young career, America’s Quarterback, Pro Bowler Jameis Winston, would fit that description.
When the lights were on in college, Jameis was primetime. He lost but one game and had too many thrilling comebacks to count. The biggest was leading a touchdown drive to win a national championship against Auburn. It was riveting TV week in and week out.
Jameis has played in four games under the lights for a nationally televised audience in the NFL. He is 1-3 and in his one win, at Carolina this year, he was Trent Dilfer-esque. Bucs coach Dirk Koetter, frustrated with a rash of turnovers Jameis had committed, took the ball out of his hands and went old school smashmouth football.
In those four primetime games, Jameis has averaged 277 yards passing with five interceptions. Not exactly Joe Montana numbers.
Last night Jameis started out too amped and it showed. He was way too inconsistent. Brilliant in the third quarter, invisible the rest of the way. After Jameis connected with Cam Brate on a 10-yard touchdown to give the Bucs a 20-17 lead late in the third, he completed a grand total of three passes the rest of the way.
That, folks, is not a primetime quarterback. Yet.
December 19th, 2016 at 8:04 am
I lose the fact that Jameis is only 22 and will still make some immature mistakes. Its going to take some time, but I for one and glad he’s our QB.
December 19th, 2016 at 8:06 am
Very true. From the very first play — missing a wide-open Luke Stocker — Jameis had a lousy game. The difference in accuracy between Prescott and Jameis was striking, at least for this game.
December 19th, 2016 at 8:07 am
He wants to win so bad. That will eventually pay off. It seems like he almost wants it so much that he get’s too amped up. Even saying that, if Gosder played even remotely like a NFL football player we would of had a chance to win. I kept screaming to roll him out away from Irving. Isn’t Jamies #1 outside the pocket???
December 19th, 2016 at 8:07 am
Love Jameis, I love his heart and how excited he is to play football. He’s going to have to learn how to control himself though.
December 19th, 2016 at 8:11 am
We got very little pressure on Prescott…..Jameis played poorly but was constantly under pressure.
I think Koetter called a terrible game….where were the screens and checkoffs….we didn’t throw the ball to Martin once.
We need to start throwing short passes….notice that Prescott threw many of them.
December 19th, 2016 at 8:11 am
Give me accuracy and poise in a QB over passion and consistently making dumb mistakes. Very good player, but he has a lot to improve upon before earning the Franchise label.
Gotta stop turning the ball over and be more accurate with the ball as you can’t depend on your d to carry you
December 19th, 2016 at 8:12 am
Jameis will get there. It’s just annoying how other young qb’s come out with perfect mechanics and pin point accuracy. And that has nothing to do with surrounding talent.
December 19th, 2016 at 8:12 am
Totally agree – we need games like last night. Learning tool for Jameis – now we need to see him bounce back and play one of his best games next week.
Games like last night are really good for an organization. Hopefully, our management noticed some glaring weaknesses that the rest of the world noticed last night and they try to fix that in the off season. The best way for Jameis to get over getting to jacked-up in this type of high-leverage situations is practice. and we just happen to have another one this week at New Orleans – can’t go into a shell – we need to score points to win this one.
So awesome to talk football in December and not the draft.
December 19th, 2016 at 8:15 am
Yes, Jameis was eratic, overthrowing several receivers including short little Humphries and even Evans. And he was a turnover machine AGAIN
But we would not have been in that game if not for Jameis. No pass protection last night from the great Oline Joe loves. The running game was a joke: Martin 2.6 yards per carry and Sims with half of that. So, how was it we still had the opportunity to win the game at the end of the 4th Qtr? Jameis Winston
December 19th, 2016 at 8:21 am
I do not understand why we only rushed 4 all game and gave Dak all day to throw. He is a rookie, their offensive line is great, why not blitz? Like at all? We blitzed 3 times I can remember. 2 resulted in sacks and 1 resulted in a large gain because we blitzed the weak side and Dak ran the other way and no one was there because we blitzed 1!!!
December 19th, 2016 at 8:24 am
I cant believe what I am reading time and time again. The man had his arm hit on two of the turnovers and that is his fault?!?!?!?!?!? The one pick was just throwing up at the end of the half and the last one was not a good throw. If you want to rip him for the dumb penalty or him missing Evans on the deep ball fine but please state the truth. Anyone who get their arm hit while throwing cannot control where it is going and when your elbow gets hit as your going back there is a very good chance the ball will come out. I just cannot understand how everyone is saying those are his fault I am completely lost with the logic!
December 19th, 2016 at 8:25 am
I hope Jameis spends this spring perfecting his mechanics. His release time, his release point, his torque, his footwork etc.He obviously has the knowledge to make it work, along with taking care of himself physicaly. Im confident he will put everything together next season, and this team will take the division.
December 19th, 2016 at 8:28 am
I hope he finds a way to magically make the ball go where he wants when his arm is hit and to have the super human ability to hold the ball when trying to throw despite a NFL DT hitting his arm and oh yeah to not try to throw a hail mary to end a half just to avoid stat dorks from saying he had 3 picks. You people are clueless.
December 19th, 2016 at 8:32 am
That, folks, is not a primetime quarterback. Yet.
So Bucs fans if we make the playoffs, don’t be surprise of a one and out.
Go Bucs!!!
December 19th, 2016 at 8:34 am
You want to see who is not ready for prime time. Whos name is not on this list below?
Total Tackles, Solo Tackles, Sacks, TFL, PD, QB Hits
Kwon Alexander 21 11 0 1 0 0 0
Keith Tandy 14 9 0 0 0 0 0
Lavonte David 9 5 1 1 0 1 0
Bradley McDougald 8 5 0 0 0 0 0
Brent Grimes 6 5 0 0 2 0 0
William Gholston 4 2 1 1 0 1 0
Javien Elliott 4 2 0 1 0 0 0
Vernon Hargreaves III 3 3 0 0 0 0 0
Robert Ayers 3 2 0 1 0 0 0
Sealver Siliga 2 2 1 1 0 1 0
Chris Conte 2 2 0 0 0 0 0
Daryl Smith 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Luke Stocker 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Josh Robinson 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Charles Sims 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Kevin Pamphile 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Adarius Glanton 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
Peyton Barber 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
Ryan Russell 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
December 19th, 2016 at 8:39 am
Dang, ndog with the truth bomb!!!
McCoy yelling at the beginning of the game but disappeared when it started. That’s why you don’t give big $$ to interior d linemen. Our stars did not play well last night.
December 19th, 2016 at 8:55 am
The Bucs are looking at a possible playoff game but also a possibility of finishing in last place in the division AGAIN!
BOOM!!!!
December 19th, 2016 at 8:58 am
Had to record the game and get up early to watch it this morning. I’ve been coming to terms with what I saw. Honestly, I think we are who we thought they were. The Bucs I mean. Jameis was struggling all night to find a receiver, we knew that he had nobody outside of #13 to get it to. Brate and Hump will never be enough to spread out the coverage. Especially with running game never getting started, which was something else we knew coming in to this game.
A few things that I’m encouraged by: 1) despite the fact that we had those glaring holes, we were still highly competitive with the best team in the conference. 2) The holes that we have are glaring. Meaning, we can have a clear focus going in to the draft and FA.
We have a good team. We’ve seen that. The core of the team we have is solid. we need to fill holes and we need some role players. We need receivers in the worst way. Not just players with numbers on their backs in the 80s but legitimate receivers who can run a route and catch a pass. I think we’ve seen the effects of our opposition not respecting the speed of our receivers. We need to have a player who can take the top off a defense. He doesn’t have to be an Evans who you’re going to for a march up the field kind of drive, but he needs to be someone that the defense has to account for or he’ll take it 80 yards on you. We don’t have anyone like that on the team right now.
Additionally, the run game is concerning. Mostly because I’m not sure why Rodgers is nowhere to be seen. Why are we so stubbornly sticking with 22? I get that he’s a good blocker, but he was blocking as well as the rest of the line yesterday, plus no one on the other side was respecting him running the ball. Why not get someone in there that can get it to the second level and break a tackle? I nearly threw my remote and woke everyone in the house up when they had Sims dancing around in the backfield again. If he hits a hole in the next two games, it’ll be the first time he’s done it this season.
All that said, I’m still encouraged by the direction the team is going in. I’m not checking out. If anything, I’m more encouraged. I have faith that we’ll take care of those needs and come back stronger next year.
I’m hopeful for the playoffs, but I came in to the season hoping to simply look like a good team. We’re doing that, so now it’s all gravy. If they do or don’t get in to the playoffs, I’m ok with where we are, for this year.
December 19th, 2016 at 8:59 am
McCoy was double teamed all night…
Shut up
December 19th, 2016 at 9:04 am
That take is flawed as usual. It’s a team game and most SECOND year quarterbacks miss throws and have bad games especially with the minds of supporting cast Winston has. He didn’t have his best game but give the best team in football some credit for having a good defense something you said they didn’t have. We’re doing the best we can with what we have so I’d say this team has overachieved. Considering the guy is only 22 and his best years are ahead of him that record will flip eventually. 4 games is not a big enough sample size to say that having not completed his second season yet. Big Ben and others came into this league with championship talent around them. We started building an offense with the quarterback he’s supposed to struggle
December 19th, 2016 at 9:07 am
mccoy was double team and no one else could beat their one on one match but this is the best o line and rb in the league. D bent but didn’t break and played well. When you go on the road to play dallas, pitt, atl or new england… you are going to have to score in the high 20’s to have a shot. The dumb plays by Jameis killed us ( ball slips out of his hands and gives them 7, headbutt kills a td and we get 3) but how wildly inaccurate he was is troubling. We always talk about not having many weapons, but they were open ALOT.
December 19th, 2016 at 9:11 am
This loss means one thing. We are not the best team in football and all you can ask for is effort because they weren’t supposed to win for a reason. Losing to the rams was embarrassing this win I was angry because the line forgot how to block, being that Winston practiced against this style of defense as a rookie I was disappointed by his inaccuracy but we were in it at the end
December 19th, 2016 at 9:19 am
J 2.0
You should have watched the game before making such a stupid statement McCoy was not double teamed all night he was single blocked and abused the majority of the night.
Once again the majority of blame goes on a young qb but the lazy, out of shape fragile highly paid DT can’t make a play and the Pathetic 22 can’t get out of his own way.
Winston has tons of room for improvement. I like the new bucs but the lazy useless old bucs led by 93 and 22 need to go away.
December 19th, 2016 at 9:30 am
Jameis had a complete team in college and a right tackle that didn’t ragdolled onto his kiester on every play in the 4th qtr.
Without that one incompetent dude, we probably over-come the adversity and win this game.
P.S. am I the only one that hated Gerald Mccoys pregame speech? Shoulda let Jameis Get us fired up on National Tv. That crap was lame.
December 19th, 2016 at 9:36 am
@Blake – No, you’re not. He’s a corny dude. He doesn’t have the kind of mindset that gets people fired up. The way he expressed himself and carries himself isn’t something that makes people want to perform. He’s a talented guy, and someone we need on the team. Not saying for a minute that he needs to go anywhere. But we need to let go of the idea that he should be out in front of anything.
December 19th, 2016 at 9:40 am
ndog I coudn’t agree with you more on the 3 Winston interceptions. One was a Hail marry to end the half, his arm was hit in the second one,and the last one he was trying to make something out of nothing to end the game. Even his first fumble his arm was hit trying to throw. So the solution is clear build a line like Dallas has and Winston can have all day to throw the ball like Prescott does.
December 19th, 2016 at 9:43 am
yeah, for gmc to make that kind of money he has to make an impact….z.martin mauled him last night….I couldn’t stand gmc’s pre game speech….it was to nice….no fire…all smiles and laughs….
smitty has to get creative and be aggressive….it seems as if he was content with playing the same way the giants played the cowboys but they were able to get pressure with their front 4….should’ve brought something new….corner blitz…safety blitz….GO BUCS!!!
December 19th, 2016 at 9:52 am
Honestly to me this team is ahead of schedule.
Not ready for prime time? Yet playing at a higher level than MOST of us expected.
Buying those season ticks soon.
December 19th, 2016 at 10:09 am
@chipbuc…I agree…draft a tackle in the first round(or one that has 1st round talent early)…move marpet to center…pamphile and sweezy play guard….hopefully c.benenoch will be ready to contribute at tackle next year but that looks to be a long shot…..fix the oline Jason!!!!….GO BUCS!!!!
December 19th, 2016 at 10:14 am
Jeeeeeesus. It was a 6 point game against a team with one of the best records in the NFL.
Get some perspective
December 19th, 2016 at 10:15 am
Trade for mm
December 19th, 2016 at 10:28 am
I was encouraged that we made a good game out of it. We took that 20-17 lead and I was hopeful but just like against Oakland, we had our chances on offense at the end to go get a victory. I think that I recall the vast majority of fans here picked the Bucs to go between 7-9 and 9-7 and no very many predicted a playoff season. They are on track and IF and it is a big IF, the Bucs can win out then maybe we get lucky and still make it into the playoffs. Though if we do sneak into the playoffs we will be one and done. We just do not have the horses and Winston has to somehow figure out how to be more accurate. Every time Winston throws a deep pass, I automatically think it will be incomplete due to an over throw. This may be the end of the line for this season but I am still encouraged. We have a lot of work to do in the off season to build upon this one. Go Bucs!!
December 19th, 2016 at 10:43 am
Huge Jameis fan. The turnovers were not his fault. Two he got his arm hit and two others were basically hail mary attempts.
But so what.
The issue is he has a long throwing motion. Thats a flaw that he must work on. A quicker release and he avoids two of those turnovers. Its on Jameis to improve that.
Time will tell if Jason Licht can fix that issue or not. Jameis has to do the things necessary to improve himself.
December 19th, 2016 at 11:00 am
tmax,
what game did you watch?
I watched GMC get double teamed regularly. No one else beat their blocks and we rushed 4 all night. We needed to blitz and only did 3 times that I can recall.
December 19th, 2016 at 11:04 am
Friends of mine at the game last night (Dallas fans); their first 2 comments:
1. Who is your Right Tackle?
2. Is Jameis always that inconsistent? Me: no, apparently just on prime time.
December 19th, 2016 at 11:56 am
I think Brate has really stepped up. 7 TDS, 56 catches. Haven’t had TE this caliber in a long time. Just may take over as TE with most TDS and catches in Bucs history. Give the guy some fricken credit.
December 19th, 2016 at 1:24 pm
McCoy was double teamed all night…
Dallas has one heck of an offense line, That was a collective loss last night!
That game showed us , We’re still a few pieces away from competing with the elite teams, but We’re getting there.
December 19th, 2016 at 1:46 pm
Very proud of the Bucs and again we have to remember Jameis is only 22 and – many people forget this – a year younger than Prescott even. There are a lot of good things with this team that is clearly on the up and up and (whether we want to admit it or not) most likely a year away. There are two very concerning things, however…
1. Jameis’ inaccuracy and emotional issues are very real and not going away. Yes – he can absolutely make throws that most can’t and that is what it takes to be elite. But every single game we have to say, “well, he overthrew those guys early because he was overhyped. That HAS to stop. Jameis has to find a way to go into the zone before the game starts and lose the jumping up and down rah rah screaming seconds before kickoff. It is hurting him and the team. He also has to run more… there wer 4-5 times last night where he could have clearly run for 5-6 yards as he rolled towards the line, but threw into traffic instead. Take the yardage.
2. I’m a broken record about this… But Joe is wrong when he says the Bucs have a good offensive line. The PFF stat guys are absolutely right. Why couldn’t the Bucs do anything on those late game drives? They couldn’t block AND had to leave in the backs and extra blockers to help the O-linemen who couldn’t block. SOOOOO… less guys going out on routes…. SOOOOOO Evans is smothered in coverage. How many late game drives to we see where the QB can check it to the back over the middle and keep gaining those 8-15yd chunks while the defense keeps everything in front of them? We couldn’t do that because they had to help our inept O-line. Family or not… the answer is moving Smith inside or to RT where he can be elite and going after a much better LT AND finding a way to bring in one more beast to pair with Marpet. Then you’re improving 3 positions on the line and allowing more weapons to go out on routes. Plus – the Bucs absolutely need to pair another WR with better talent with Evans. The offense is those 3 players away from being a real contender in this league. That is NOT too much to ask for over the course of one offseason. #gobucs
December 19th, 2016 at 1:48 pm
Patrick in Virginia thank you for laying out what SHOULD BE
the obvious!
Nd dog and 1987 absolutely!
Yes winning would have been a bonus but we hung in there inspite of the talent we have. Wish also mean we are gaining talent and experience. Our weaknesses and missing pieces are glaring…but we are still playing with the big dawgs
GO BUCS!