Buccaneers: Jameis Winston Getting Advised by Ex-Star Derrick Brooks
Jameis Winston has been receiving advice and counsel from a Buccaneers legend.
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Who could have guessed that the Buccaneers have such a great mentoring program? Well, they don’t actually have an official one that we are aware of, but these players take the concept of taking care of their own very seriously.
Everyone knows about the situation with Jameis Winston in a local school. He said something he shouldn’t have and the whole world was up in arms about it. Many of us understood that it was a simple mistake, but some of the world wasn’t so enlightened. Winston actually received quite a bit of grief, although he received a fair share of support as well.
We now come to learn that Winston has had a year-round mentor to help guide him not only through this, but through everything he has to endure. He’s there to be a sounding board for the young quarterback.
His name is Derrick Brooks, remember him? Derrick Brooks of 1,710 tackles over 14 years with the Bucs. That Derrick Brooks. Brooks uses his time spent in Tampa to pay it forward. He has done it by agreeing to be interviewed here at the Pewter Plank. We now learn that Brooks has taken time to be a mentor for our young franchise quarterback.
In an interview reported on by Joe Bucs Fan, Brooks talked about how he has regular meetings with Winston, and gave him some counsel on how to react to the situation that came up over his words during the school visit. He gave him some ideas on how to handle future community visits:
"Brooks said he advised Jameis to explore different techniques when appealing to a young audience, such as an 8-to-10 minute intense presentation followed by fun interaction, rather than a long speech like Jameis made. There were other suggestions, Brooks shared, including Jameis bringing a teammate each time he’s out in the community."
These are all excellent suggestions. They are not blaming Winston, but instead, they are giving him alternatives that play to his strengths. He is good at quick, inspirational speeches? Make them just that, quick. Then, move to another activity. Bring someone with him so he is not the only one speaking. If he has the tendency to go off on a tangent and say something that could be taken the wrong way, compensate.
It’s not saying he is a bad guy, he is saying to play to what he is good at.
Winston also told Brooks that he is not going to stop making appearances in the community, which is also a wonderful thing. Being the face of a franchise is not something that only occurs on the field. Representing the organization off the field is a major component, and the fact that Winston won’t let this dissuade him is the perfect attitude to have.
Whether or not it’s fair, Winston is going to be criticized. What he does will be under a microscope. He is an NFL quarterback and a former number one pick. Unfortunately, due to whatever happened at Florida State, all eyes are on him even more. He will make mistakes from time to time, but it is how he bounces back and learns from them that counts.
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The sense of family amongst current and former Bucs is something special. Brooks doesn’t have to take the time to mentor Winston. The fact that he does shows how much Bucs care for fellow Bucs. You don’t see that very often.