Jameis Winston, a case study

By Trevor Speetzen December 05, 2024 00:40

Photo by AP Photo/David Richard

Jameis Winston has become one of the most beloved quarterbacks by fans over the course of the 2024 season and for a variety of reasons. He has funny interviews, he plays hard, he’s grateful just to be in the NFL and he improved the Browns after taking over for Deshan Watson.

Winston is 30 years old and currently in the middle of his tenth season in the NFL. Because of his status as a career back up quarterback, he’s more likely to be remembered for his quirky antics than his play on the field; but that couldn’t be further from the truth.

Winston’s career is just as unique as his personality, he’s an accurate passer with the tendency to commit costly turnovers in crucial situations.

In a recent game against the Denver Broncos, Winston went 34-58 for 497 passing yards and four passing TD’s, but also had three costly interceptions that included two pick sixes.

That week 13 statline in the loss against the Broncos pretty much sums up Jameis Winston's career: a gunslinging quarterback that can put up big offensive numbers, but still finds a way to lose a game.

Winston has a history of this, during his final season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2019, Winston cemented himself in NFL lore when he became the first NFL quarterback to throw at least 30 touchdowns and 30 interceptions.

Another funny thing to note is that Winston also led the league in passing yards that year with 5,109. Leading the league in passing yards with over 30 touchdown passess in usually enough criteria to make a QB elite, but Winston is definitely a unique one.

Because of his reputation as a gunslinging turnover machine, people tend to forget that Winston was once a highly touted quarterback coming out of Florida State.

After redshirting in 2012, Winston was the Seminoles starting quarterback from 2013-2014. During the 2013 season, Winston won the Heisman Trophy after throwing 40 touchdown passes and 4,057 passing yards.

Winston also led the Seminoles to an undefeated 14-0 season that ended with a National Championship win over the Auburn Tigers.

After another solid season in 2014, Winston declared for the 2015 NFL draft and was taken first overall by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Winston would deliver a promising rookie season and was to a Pro Bowl and to the PFWA All-Rookie Team.

However since that season, Winston has become the quarterback that we all know today. He was released by the Buccaneers after 2019 and became the New Orleans Saints backup QB from 2020-2023 before joining the Browns in 2024.

Dating back to his days in Tampa Bay, Winston’s reputation of being a quirky guy began to grow, especially after his viral pregame speech where he told his team that they were going to “eat a W.”

Winston continued these funny soundbites during his time in New Orleans and even this season with the Browns. His most recent quoteworthy “Winstonism” occurred during his post game press conference after the week 13 loss to Denver.

“I know I'm better than this," Winston told reporters after the game. “Like, I'm just praying for the Lord to deliver me from pick-sixes.”

While Winston hasn’t had the career that anyone had hoped for, he’s still had a great pro career and he’ll be remembered as one of the best personalities in NFL history.