What Is Jameis Winston? Why Isn’t He Where We Expected?

December 13th, 2017

This week, Jeff and Tom hash it out. What is Jameis? What can Jameis be? Why isn’t he where we all expected him to be? It gets heated! But as the offseason looms and another last place finish is all but assured, it’s time for a self-examination. ScuttleBucs… buckle up!

Presented by Fan Retreat, The ScuttleBucs podcast is right here every Wednesday afternoon on JoeBucsFan.com, hosted by Jeff Cameron and Tom Lang, powerhouse personalities and lifelong Bucs fans at ESPN Tallahassee, 97.9 FM.

The ScuttleBucs can be found at Google Play, Podbean and iTunes. It rebroadcasts Sundays on ESPN Tallahassee from 11 a.m. to noon.

Listen or download above. Read more about The ScuttleBucs below.

Of course, many of you know Cameron is the namesake of “The Jeff Cameron Show.” Joe has been a guest with Cameron for years and Cameron is a personal friend of Jameis Winston.

Cameron is a St. Petersburg native, a proud Lakewood High graduate and a diehard Bucs fan since he was a little guy running through Tampa Stadium in the late 70’s. Jeff is a 20-year radio host in Tallahassee talking Florida State and national sports on a daily basis — weekdays 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. on ESPN Tallahassee 97.9 FM since 2012. Jeff has reported/opined for ESPN SportsCenter, ESPN Radio’s flagship show Mike & Mike, on SiriusXM and he appears on local shows from Seattle to Miami. He thanks the football gods daily that the Lovie Smith era is over and misses the days of Lee Roy Selmon and Doug Williams.

Tom Lang, a Clearwater and Palm Harbor native, graduated Clearwater Central Catholic in 2005. He started working in sports in the fall of 2004, covering Friday nights on the high school beat for the St. Petersburg Times. After moving up to the state capital, Tom worked the Florida State sports beat for the Rivals and 24/7 sport networks. He has an eight-year relationship with “The Jeff Cameron Show” as a producer, being promoted to Executive Producer in 2012. He is also the Operations Manager of ESPN Tallahassee. Tom still smiles at the memory of dejected Eagles fans leaving their beloved Vet as NFC Bridesmaids all those years ago, and he’s Brad Johnson’s biggest fan. Seriously.

29 Responses to “What Is Jameis Winston? Why Isn’t He Where We Expected?”

  1. Mike Johnson Says:

    Jameis is not where we expect him to be because..He needs a disciplinarian. Somebody to show/teach him..situational football. He’s still going to be very good one day..I think. But he’s got to much helter skelter backyard crap in him and needs more control. He needs to think more when he’s on the field. Again I say, he’s learned all he’s gonna learn from Koetter. And I’m not talkin about a Gruden showin him either. There is somebody out there who can..show him the way.

  2. Destinjohnny Says:

    He isn’t a bust
    He isn’t elite

  3. Destinjohnny Says:

    I don’t think he has that chops to be a top 10 qb

  4. The Anomaly Says:

    Dude is going to make $100 mill off of a freshman year at FSU.

  5. BrianBucs Says:

    We All hope that Jameis drastically improves and becomes the QB that the Bucs have over and over told us he is and leads them to a championship. However, at this point I just don’t see it. If the Bucs decide they are going to extend him with a 100 million dollar contract they are insane. He looks good on paper but stats are for losers as his W-L record shows. Bucs have some tough decisions to make concerning him. Do they continue to cater to and build the entire franchise around a QB that will never be championship calibre or elite or do they cut their loses? 100 million is a lot of money to take a risk or a gamble with

  6. LifeOfABucFan Says:

    Agree with BrianBucs…

    and someone said he needs someone to guide him..Jameis will be 24 in 3 weeks…at 24, my father had already been to war and back and back again..he didn’t need hand holding…

  7. Mike Johnson Says:

    LifeofABucfan….But your dad did not have the hope and fate of a millions dollars franchise laying in his hands either..Did he? Good coaching is not hand holding.. Its… creating winners, championships. You know those thing that..elude Tampa Bay!!

  8. gambelero Says:

    Great podcast. I tape lectures so I know how hard it is to do 48 str8t and be on point thruout.

  9. Waterboy Says:

    Interesting info on the Jenna Laine report that she’d heard from multiple sources and defensive assistants from opposing teams say the Bucs offense reads like an open book. I was in Koetter’s corner but there’s no way he’ll survive that.

  10. NFLNut Says:

    **************

    What did most people expect Jameis to be at this stage of his career?

    Most football fans expected Jameis to be Jamarcus Russell and be a complete bust. Even so-called experts who were “high” on Jameis before the draft were saying he had the highest “bust potential” of any player in the draft.

    Almost no one thought Jameis would become the ONLY QB ever to throw for B2B 4,000 yard seasons or that he would become the ONLY QB ever to throw for 11,000 yards before his 24th birthday. By all accounts Jameis has wildly exceeded pre-draft expectations of just about everyone.

    What is Jameis?

    He’s the ONLY QB IN NFL HISTORY to start his career with back-to-back 4,000 yard seasons and about to become THE ONLY QB IN NFL HISTORY to reach 11,000 passing yards before his 24th birthday.

    He’s also a kid that has progressed each year and this year, if one extrapolates his 7 healthy games over a full season one would realize he’d pass for 4,885 yards, 32 TDs and 14 INTs.

    What Jameis isn’t?

    Jameis is NOT the best QB in the NFL at 23 years of age nor is he as good as 30-somethings Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady and Drew Brees at his current age of 23

    What can Jameis become?

    Jameis has all the tools as well as the desire and drive to become a Hall of Famer, period.

    **************

  11. Waterboy Says:

    At this point Jameis wouldn’t get a 100 mil contract he still has 1 year left on his rookie deal with an option to extend the rookie contract an extra year. 2 more years is enough time to evaluate his worth if not they can franchise tag him the following year for about 26 mil to evaluating him further before committing to a long-term contract.

  12. NFLNut Says:

    ***********

    People need to remember Jameis was drafted by the NFL’s laughing stock, not some 9-7 team like Deshaun Watson or a team with a great line and running game like Mariota, Dak, etc.

    To me, WHITE JAMEIS aka Sam Darnold going to the Browns #1 overall will be in the same position Jameis was … and he’s looked at as almost the exact same type of prospect Jameis was back in 2015.

    To me, if the Browns draft Darnold #1 overall, I would say I “expect” Darnold to put up around 10,000 yards, 60 TDs and 50 INTs his first 3 years in the league with maybe 15 wins or so … if he does better than that, great. Now, look at Jameis … by the end of this year he’ll probably be around 11,300 yards, 70 TDs and 45 INTs with 17-18 wins. That’s more than I expected out of him and more than I expect out of Darnold … Jameis is on a HOF career track, period.

    ***********

  13. NFLNut Says:

    ******************

    Further to the above … people need to recognize that all QB situations are different.

    Like I said, if Sam Darnold gets drafted by the Browns, I’d expect 10,000 pass yards, 60 TDs, 50 INTs and 15 wins in his first 3 years … HOWEVER … if the Titans trade Mariota and the #1 pick to move up to #1 and draft Darnold and he gets to play the next 3 years in Tennessee I’d expect him to throw for 11,000+ yards with 70+ TDs and just 40 INTs and win at least 30 games!

    Now, if he went to Tennessee and put up the above stats that would NOT make him any better of a QB than if he went to Cleveland and put up those aforementioned stats … it would just mean he was in a different situation.

    ******************

  14. BrianBucs Says:

    NFL Nut.
    This is what we all hoped for, but it’s not the case. Jameis has regressed this year and everybody can see it.
    Jameis is a major disappointment to lot of fans because for PR purposes he was majorly over hyped to us. He looks good on paper with his passing yards in garbage time against soft defenses, but as we know stats are for losers. He is a third year starter in the NFL so the “he’s still a young QB” arguments no longer apply. We ALL hope he turns into the QB you are fantasizing about but at this point that looks like a very big longshot

  15. NFLNut Says:

    ^ You’re wrong, period.

    This season Jameis has a career high in completion percentage and passer rating despite playing part of the season with an injured throwing shoulder … he also has a higher TD % and lower INT % than reigning MVP Matt Ryan … those are FACTS.

    Jameis has progressed every year and is the most accomplished 23 year old QB in the history of football … but people love to hate on the young man.

  16. NFLNut Says:

    BTW, the statement “stats are for losers” is used by players who suck but play on great teams that win … guys like Trent Dilfer, Brad Johnson, Jeff Hostettler, Robert Horry, Derek Fisher, John Salley, etc., are the types of goof balls that would say that.

    Case Keenum has a better “win percentage” than Aaron Rodgers this year … is he a better QB? Of course not.

    Marcus Mariota has a better win percentage than Philip Rivers despite infinitely worse stats … is he a better QB than Rivers? Of course not.

    The FACT is that all the all-time greats and HOF’ers are all-time greats and HOF’ers because of their stats, not because of their TEAM success … Barry Sanders won ONE playoff game in his entire career … Tarkenton, Fouts, Marino, Moon and Kelly combined to win ZERO rings in 70+ years of NFL experience … stats mean a ton, a lot more than wins and losses do!

  17. BrianBucs Says:

    NFL Nut

    You keep making my argument and proving my point for me.
    Jameis looks good on paper but that doesn’t match what’s on the field or in the win column. He continues to make too many plays that could end up of Football Follies. He still holds on to the ball too long which makes his O-Line look bad, goes through his progressions slowly and stares down his recievers.
    Maybe he just hasn’t had the right coach or coaching yet, or maybe he just doesn’t take coaching well. But he hasn’t progressed or improved this year at all and maybe he won’t.
    As a longtime Bucs fan I want Jameis to be “The Man”. But right now he The Disappointment”

  18. BrianBucs Says:

    Also, you habe to remember that there is much, much more to being a successful NFL QB than just being able to throw the football

  19. SteveK Says:

    Dirk and Jameis will work. We need help in the trenches, and a new defensive line.

  20. NFLNut Says:

    BrianBucs,

    You’re not understanding me so I’ll make it crystal clear … WINS have next to nothing to do with individual excellence from the QB position … nothing.

  21. The Anomaly Says:

    Hall of Famer?

    BUahahahahahaha

    FSU homers are stupid

  22. ElioT Says:

    @NFLNut

    “WINS have next to nothing to do with individual excellence from the QB position … nothing.”

    WHAT???!!!

    That’s the most absurd statement I’ve ever read on this site.

    What do most “excellent” QBs have in common? WINS!!!!

    Or are you saying Jameis is excellent, but not quite excellent enough to take over games and “win” them?

    I swear I feel like I’m taking crazy pills sometimes with some of this blind trust in Winston just because we’ve never really had a “franchise” QB.

    I think Jameis is the best QB the Bucs have ever drafted, but that’s not saying very much and I don’t believe the Glaziers are going to sign off on $100mil unless he takes makes some huge strides.

    Oh and then there’s that whole looming investigation… what happens if Jameis is suspended 4 or 6 games in 2018? What then?

    Go Sucs!

    #bucsfever

  23. BrianBucs Says:

    NFL Nut

    Ummmm, what? Wins mean nothing? Seriously?
    The truly great QB’s know how to win.
    It sounds like you would rather have Winston put up inflated numbers and the Bucs still lose than have a QB that knows how to get the Bucs some wins. Totally perplexing. So you are more of a Winston fanboy than a devoted Bucs fan.
    I want the QB that wins games for the Bucs, whoever that may be

  24. NFLNut Says:

    ********************

    ^ ElioT and Brian,

    QBs do NOT win games, TEAMS win games.

    Garbage QBs like Dilfer, Brad Johnson, Doug Williams and Jeff Hostettler all have won rings as starting QBs but all need to buy a ticket to get into the Hall of Fame, while all-time great QBs with busts in Canton like Tarkenton, Fouts, Marino, Moon and Jim Kelly combined to win ZERO rings in 70+ years of NFL football.

    This year Case Keenum has a higher winning percentage than Aaron Rodgers and Blake Bortles has a higher winning percentage than Philip Rivers but we all know Rodgers and Rivers are the vastly superior QBs.

    I am of the opinion that basically every single non-rookie starting QB in the NFL is capable of winning a ring on the right team and that even the greatest QBs in the NFL are destined to never win rings unless they have great teams around them.

    I can’t think of a single example of any QB in the history of the NFL to “carry a team to a SB victory”, not one, but I can think of many examples of garbage QBs winning rings on great TEAMS.

    Look at it another way … Peyton Manning, when he was at his absolute worst, won a ring on a great Denver TEAM, but in his other 17 years, probably 14 of which were absolutely excellent and near MVP-worthy, he won just 1 ring.

    QBs do NOT win games, TEAMS win games, period.

    Jameis Winston, right now, as-is, is fully capable of winning a SB on the right team … in fact, you throw Jameis right now on the Eagles and I’d pick them to win the NFC … and you throw him on the Steelers and tell me that Brady is going down with an injury and I’d take Pittsburg to win the whole thing.

    But, Jameis and EVERY OTHER QB in the entire NFL is not capable of “carrying” this current Bucs squad to a ring … no way, no how … they are a terrible team with perhaps the worst pass defense and one of the worst overall defenses in the entire league … even Brady and Rodgers are not taking this current Bucs squad to glory.

    Fans like you seem to expect Jameis to be a “team Savior” and that’s just naive and frankly shows your low-football-IQ.

    What you need to realize is that the Bucs have a franchise QB and one for the next 15 years and they have the weapons in the passing game to not worry about that part of their team (passing game) for the next decade … but … that they also have MAJOR PROBLEMS on the defensive side of the ball, problems on the offensive line and a major hole at running back as well …

    *****************

  25. NFLNut Says:

    I love it when my fact based replies just silence people … loons talk smack, get a verbal spanking and then go silent … cracks me up.

  26. nole4JabooANDdBucs Says:

    Thanks guys…I Really enjoyed this show!

  27. Dexfields22 Says:

    I like the fact that this podcast actually talks football unlike the other one with which three guys Just clowning around and complimenting each other!!

  28. German Buc Says:

    NFLNut, I love your posts! Just great! Thank you

  29. Joe Says:

    QBs do NOT win games, TEAMS win games, period.

    Never watched Aaron Rodgers, eh?