Zain Ahmed
With the news Jameis Winston will be starting on Sunday, it complicates things a little.
However, I think Winston starting is the right call. He is the franchise guy, if he’s healthy he should be starting.
I have to admit I did change my perspective on this. Initially I thought it was a bad idea. I didn’t think it was worth risking further injury to Winston in a lost season.
I still think the injury concern is valid, but Winston will improve with every game he plays, it’s another lesson for him. I’d like to think Winston has learned something while sitting out, I’m hoping he learned a little patience and his own limitations.
Winston was 100% cleared by doctors meaning he shouldn’t have any physical limitations, but that doesn’t mean he should come back slinging. Winston should be eased back into a normal workload. I believe if Winston finishes strong he will be able to carry the momentum over to next season.
If Winston takes too many hits, he should definitely be pulled though, because the last thing the Bucs want is another RG3 debacle.
Next, I’d prefer if Griffin and Fitzpatrick were both active, but that isn’t possible in this scenario, so if I have to choose I’d like Griffin to back up Winston and Fitzpatrick be inactive.
With Fitzpatrick we know exactly what we’re getting from him, Griffin is still an unknown. I’m not saying Griffin is some superstar in the making, but he may be a solid fill-in QB for all we know. Griffin looked solid in preseason and I’m sure he’d be solid when called upon.