TAMPA, Fla. — One day after Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston became the first in NFL history to throw for at least 30 touchdowns and 30 interceptions, coach Bruce Arians said little to inspire confidence that Winston will be back next season.
When asked if he believes the Bucs could win with another quarterback, Arians responded, “Another quarterback? Oh yeah. If we can win with this one, we can definitely win with another one too. We’re gonna have a defense.”
Arians came out of retirement, in large part, for the opportunity to coach Winston, whom he’s known since he attended Arians’ camps in Birmingham.
And while Winston did become just the eight quarterback in NFL history to reach the 5,000 passing yards, he also struggled with turnovers, which put significant strain on the Bucs’ young defense. Opponents scored 112 points off Winston’s turnovers this year — the most in the NFL.
Arians said the Bucs weren’t in position to bench him because of injuries and that he was given longer rope despite his mistakes. He also indicated that should Winston return, he would be given less leeway.
“A big part of it was (backup) Blaine (Gabbert) getting hurt and we had to find out. This was the franchise (quarterback) — we had to find out,” Arians said.
No immediate decision will not be made on Winston’s future but Arians will meet with general manager Jason Licht and Bucs ownership in the coming weeks. Arians wants to spend time reviewing all 16 games. One of the things he’ll be doing is determining who’s at fault for every interception.
“It will be a while,” Arians said. “I would think in a few weeks we will have a decision on which way we want to head. Will we let it out? Probably not. Because you lose your leverage on that one too. So it’s ‘stay tuned.'”
Arians said a big part of the decision will hinge on what’s available in free agency and in the draft. He said it would not be an issue if he had to bring in another quarterback to re-learn his system. The Bucs are slated to selected 14th overall in the NFL draft. They’re also projected to have nearly $89 million in salary cap space — third-most in the NFL.
The big priority will be keeping the Bucs’ defensive front seven together. The Bucs’ sack numbers jumped from 38 in 2018 to 47 in 2019. The team would like to keep both Shaq Barrett — who registered a league-high 19.5 sacks this year — and Jason Pierre-Paul.
“Free agency — who’s available? What’s behind Door No. 2? I think that’s the first question,” Arians said. “And as you evaluate for the draft, that’s another question. Are they better than what you have? And then you evaluate and that’s when you make your decisions.”