The Bucs are going back to Jameis Winston as their starting quarterback. And the way that offense is designed, there’s some chance he’ll post top-5 numbers the rest of the way.
Ryan Fitzpatrick was pretty special as a fill-in, going over 400 yards three games in a row. But he’ll be 36 next month. The Bucs are holding out hope that Winston can still develop into the franchise quarterback they were hoping for when they selected him No. 1 overall.
"Jameis Winston is the guy who's going to be here way longer than I am," said Dirk Koetter. "So, he needs to be out there playing and he will be unless he gets hurt."
With the way that offense is built, I’m expecting plenty of games with over 300 yards and multiple touchdown passes. The Bucs can’t really run the ball at all, but they’re overloaded with pass catchers – Mike Evans, DeSean Jackson and Chris Godwin leading the way. Adam Humphries is an above-average slot. Tight end O.J. Howard could miss a month with a knee injury, but Cameron Brate is a capable fill-in.
Winston came off the bench against the Bears and completed 16 of 20 in a half, for 145 yards and a touchdown (with 2 interceptions).
Thru the first four weeks, the Bucs have put up the 2nd-best passing numbers in the league, averaging 363 yards per game, with 12 TDs and 7 interceptions. That’s a little better than the Rams, Chargers, Vikings – and every other non-Missouri team in the league.
| PASSING PRODUCTION | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | G | Pct | Yd/G | TD | Int | Points |
| Kansas City | 3 | 67% | 295 | 13 | 0 | 22.25 |
| Tampa Bay | 4 | 69% | 363 | 12 | 7 | 16.54 |
| LA Rams | 4 | 72% | 343 | 11 | 2 | 15.29 |
| Cincinnati | 4 | 66% | 283 | 11 | 6 | 14.54 |
| LA Chargers | 4 | 68% | 279 | 11 | 2 | 14.49 |
| Minnesota | 4 | 69% | 327 | 10 | 2 | 14.09 |
| Atlanta | 4 | 68% | 315 | 10 | 2 | 13.94 |
| Indianapolis | 4 | 67% | 265 | 9 | 3 | 12.31 |
| Pittsburgh | 4 | 64% | 339 | 8 | 5 | 12.24 |
| New Orleans | 4 | 76% | 314 | 8 | 0 | 11.92 |
| Baltimore | 4 | 63% | 308 | 8 | 2 | 11.85 |
| New England | 4 | 64% | 220 | 9 | 4 | 11.75 |
| Detroit | 4 | 67% | 293 | 8 | 6 | 11.66 |
| Miami | 4 | 70% | 198 | 9 | 3 | 11.48 |
| Chicago | 4 | 70% | 220 | 8 | 3 | 10.74 |
| Houston | 4 | 62% | 291 | 7 | 4 | 10.63 |
| Green Bay | 4 | 63% | 269 | 7 | 2 | 10.36 |
| Jacksonville | 4 | 65% | 267 | 7 | 3 | 10.33 |
| Oakland | 4 | 71% | 333 | 6 | 7 | 10.16 |
| Carolina | 3 | 67% | 204 | 5 | 1 | 10.06 |
| San Francisco | 4 | 60% | 227 | 7 | 5 | 9.84 |
| Seattle | 4 | 63% | 197 | 7 | 3 | 9.46 |
| Washington | 3 | 69% | 245 | 4 | 1 | 9.42 |
| Denver | 3 | 61% | 238 | 3 | 5 | 7.97 |
| Philadelphia | 4 | 67% | 246 | 4 | 2 | 7.07 |
| NY Giants | 4 | 74% | 232 | 4 | 1 | 6.90 |
| Cleveland | 4 | 53% | 213 | 4 | 4 | 6.67 |
| Tennessee | 4 | 63% | 203 | 4 | 4 | 6.54 |
| NY Jets | 4 | 58% | 201 | 4 | 5 | 6.52 |
| Dallas | 4 | 62% | 167 | 4 | 2 | 6.08 |
| Arizona | 4 | 61% | 142 | 3 | 5 | 4.77 |
| Buffalo | 4 | 50% | 133 | 2 | 6 | 3.66 |
On the chart above, you're looking at standard scoring -- 4 for TD passes and 1 for every 20 passing yards.
For Winston, the key is to play well enough to keep the Bucs from putting Fitzpatrick back in the lineup. If he can do that, I think we’ll be looking at one of the top 3-5 quarterbacks in the final 12 weeks of the season.
The schedule lays out favorably. The next three games are against Atlanta, Cleveland and Cincinnati. All three of those teams allowed at least 36 points on Sunday.
—Ian Allan