Against That Kid From Hawaii, Jameis and his team committed 7 turnovers and gave up 474 yards per game along with 50.5 points per game. Winston himself has not been himself as well despite an underrated Rose Bowl performance. Let's take a look:
Stat Jameis vs Mariota (Avg) vs Literally Everyone Else
Completion Percentage: 58% 78.5%
Touchdowns: 3 (1.5) 64 (2.28)
Team Turnovers: 7 (3.5) 49 (1.75)
Passing Yards: 558 (279.0) 7,616 (272.0)
Win-Loss: 0-2 28-0
You might think that what I'm hinting at is Jameis Winston will never lose a game against anyone but that Hawaiian dude. As nice as that sounds, that's not the point I want to make because I know better. What I do want to say is that Sunday showed us that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, especially Winston, are a better team than people gave them credit for after their week one embarrassment. The terrible opening performance that led everyone to write Jameis off as a bust may have been some fluke, or just a terrible game for whatever reason. Bottom line is, these Buccaneers showed Sunday that they are a more capable team than they were given credit for.
The win Sunday was against a division rival, the first time they had beaten the New Orleans Saints in 7 tries. The defense contained one of the leagues best passers - Drew Brees - to just 255 yards, one touchdown and one interception. They sacked him four times and held him to the 6th lowest QBR performance in the league for week 2. Raise your hand if you thought that defense could stop Drew freaking Brees...? This defense has potential. 2nd-year defensive end Jacquies Smith recorded 3 of those sacks on his own while also forcing two fumbles. Rookie linebacker Kwon Alexander has had a very impressive start to his career including preseason play. He and fellow linebacker Lavante David currently led the team in tackles. These young players are emerging alongside 6th-year veteran Gerald McCoy who is regarded as one of the best defensive lineman in the league. I won't lie and tell you the Bucs now have a great defense, but they're much better than their one-week performance, just ask Drew Brees.
The defense will have it's bad games this year, and it's up to Jameis to put up more points. Sunday was the first time we have seen Jameis make Jameis throws. His offensive line may be atrocious, but if he can get it out of his hands clean, he has an amplitude of electric play-makers around him. Doug Martin, Vincent Jackson, Mike Evans, Austin Sefarian-Jenkians, and Louis Murphy are all formidable options that can change the game with just one play. Martin (5-9, 223) was fifth in rushing his rookie year (2012). Jackson (6-5, 230) has 6 career 1,000-yard seasons and has been to the pro-bowl 3 times. Mike Evans (6-5, 231) had a 1,000-yard season last season as a rookie along with 12 touchdowns (10 more than anyone else on the team). Sefarian-Jenkins (on my fantasy team) currently has the 5 most receiving yards for a tight end. Murphy (6-2, 200) is currently averaging 27.3 yards per catch.
I'm not expecting a playoff run, heck I'm not expecting a playoff appearance, but this win was a big step in the right direction for this team. This season is all about growing and getting the team headed in the right direction. Jameis is finally getting more comfortable and his porous offensive line finally gave him opportunities last week which he was able to take advantage of. This team is meshing and if they can get their act together, they may look like a Jameis-led team not starting that Oregon alumn at quarterback down the road.
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