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Tampa Bay Buccaneers Should Not Trust Franchise to Jameis Winston

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Jameis Winston Florida State Tampa Bay Buccaneers

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The 2015 NFL draft is just days away and the general consensus is that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will take Jameis Winston with the first overall selection. From an on-the-field perspective, Winston is an obvious choice for Tampa. He’s a proven winner, leading Florida State to the national title just two years ago, and his skills are tremendous. He sees the field well and he has a powerful arm and has the potential to be an NFL QB for the next fifteen years. But should a franchise be trusted to Jameis Winston?

Winston’s off-field issues are well documented. Perhaps Winston did have an arrangement with an employee at the Publix where he shoplifted crab legs. Perhaps you can chalk up Winston yelling profanities at the student center to just college kids being college kids. Perhaps you can convince yourself that he did nothing wrong the night of his alleged sexual assault because no charges were filed.

If you are Bucs’ GM Jason Licht you can convince yourself of just about anything if Winston is truly the man you want to select.

Licht says the Bucs have spoken to over 75 people in vetting Winston’s character. The Glazers spent a few days with Winston to see if they were comfortable with him being the face of the franchise. But that’s exactly the issue. First, the fact that the Bucs felt it was necessary to speak with 75 different people about Winston’s character is an alarm right there. Second, Winston isn’t a faceless defensive lineman who might get himself in trouble from time to time, he is the face of the franchise. He is the quarterback. He is the man associated with the team above anyone else — more than Malcolm Glazer and more than Lovie Smith. Certainly more than Jason Licht. If you select Winston is selected as the No. 1 choice, Smith and Licht are putting all their eggs in the basket that is Jameis Winston. If Winston fails, or worse, if Winston makes any off-the-field choices that puts the Bucs in a poor light, that’s it for Smith and Licht. Even Smith’s mostly successful track record in Chicago won’t save him. Yes, the Glazers will sign off on this decision before its made, but if this situation fails, there is always a scapegoat.

Perhaps the Bucs should take a look at the Cleveland Browns. The Browns spent a first round pick, but far from the first overall pick, on Johnny Manziel and received nothing but bad press from day one. Manziel did nothing but bring the Browns grief, and his on-field performance didn’t help either. Manziel spent time in rehab this offseason as he tries to salvage his already fading NFL career, meanwhile, the Browns have spent this offseason looking at other quarterback options. Character matters. In a season when the NFL was under siege thanks to bad press generated by Ray Rice, Adrian Peterson, and many others, does Tampa really want to spend a pick that will determine the direction of their franchise on a player with this type of baggage?

If a person is convinced, then they’ve  convinced themselves that there is nothing to the sexual assault case (and the alleged second victim that arose in the civil case) and that everything else surrounding Winston is just a kid making immature decisions. Were those same immature decisions made by Andrew Luck, or Peyton Manning, or even a Sam Bradford? Whether they succeeded or not as No. 1 picks, none of those players ever once gave their respective franchises any concern over becoming the face of the franchise.

There is a lot of responsibility that comes as an NFL quarterback. Yes, you need to be successful on the field, but you also need to be a leader off it, both in the locker room and in the community. If the Bucs pick Winston on Thursday night, then that means they’ve convinced themselves not only of Winston’s talent, but that he can be a pillar of the Tampa team for years to come. If I was working for the Bucs, I certainly wouldn’t stake my job on it.

 

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