The return of Jameis Winston to the starting lineup with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers has meant the return of Ryan Fitzpatrick to a backup role.
Despite becoming the first quarterback in league history to throw for over 400 yards in three straight games, Fitzpatrick will again be in a secondary role when the Buccaneers face the Atlanta Falcons in Week Six. Head coach Dirk Koetter named Winston the starter for Tampa Bay when the team returns from its bye this week.
According to Jenna Laine of ESPN.com, Fitzpatrick didn’t love the idea of being told he is ceding his starting job to Winston, but also knew what the proposition was entering the season.
“What I said to my dad after how Week 1 went, and Week 2 and Week 3, was basically... ‘I’m either gonna win the NFL MVP this year or I’ll be back at the bench at some point.’ That’s just the reality of the situation,” Fitzpatrick said. “I wish I could still be out there but that’s the way that it goes and I’ll accept my role.”
Fitzpatrick has generally outplayed Winston at every opportunity since joining the Buccaneers last season. Winston has thrown for over 400 yards just once in his career while Fitzpatrick has done it three times this season already. But Winston was the No. 1 overall pick in 2015 and the Buccaneers still hope he can become the franchise quarterback they envisioned when selecting him four years ago.
That doesn’t make it any easier for Fitzpatrick to swallow.
“It’s not necessarily something I wanted to hear, just in terms of getting that taste back, that feeling of being out there and having fun, enjoying myself, kind of creating some momentum at the beginning of the season with the guys,” Fitzpatrick said. “But Jameis is back and he’s the guy. He’s the face of the franchise. He’s gonna do a great job. But it’s not like it’s a happy day for me. I enjoy being out there.”
