The Buccaneers were convinced that quarterback Jameis Winston was the best choice with the first pick in the 2015 draft and they’ve been happy with what they’ve seen from Winston in his brief stint with the team, but General Manager Jason Licht isn’t losing sight of the fact that Winston is a rookie.
Licht said Tuesday that the team is doing all it can to minimize Winston’s struggles in his first NFL season, but knows that history says rookie quarterbacks throw a lot of interceptions and make other mistakes born of inexperience. As a result, Licht said the rest of the team is going to have to pick up their game around Winston in order for Tampa to succeed.
“We’re going to do our best and the coaching staff to make sure the weight of the world is not on [Winston],” Licht said, via the Tampa Bay Times. “It’s going to take great defense, it’s going to take a lot of other things in the offense, not just him. He’s going to be a pivotal part of that when he’s playing. But it’s going to take more than that. Let’s be honest, there is a lot of pressure on the guy ... but to me, he’s proven that he can handle pressure. I think he’s done a phenomenal job. He never came in and said, “Hey, look at me, I’m the leader.’ Until he’s the starter, he’s not the starter. He’s actually been a little quieter than I thought he was going to be.”
Every quarterback needs the help of his teammates in order to win games, but the weight of the results still tend to fall more heavily on their shoulders than on any other players. That’s especially true of quarterbacks taken with the first overall pick, which makes it important for the Bucs that Licht is right about Winston being cool under pressure.