“We played as a team, helping each other, played a good game and got out of here”.
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Jameis Winston and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers showed they can be a team on the rise in the NFC South.
Jameis Winston continues to thrive in the National Football League, displaying in week one that his time with Dirk Koetter has only continued to help in his development. The coach met Winston when the player was a kid at one of his summer football camps in Alabama, and came away very impressed. “(Heck) of an athlete, turned into a great quarterback.
“I trust everyone of those guys out there that’s running routes”, said Winston when asked about relying on Adam Humphries on third down.
“He would be fun to coach, there’s no doubt about it”, Arians said of Winston. “Jaboo’s been a legend since he was in the ninth grade”.
“At the camp he brought his Pittsburgh Steelers (Super Bowl) ring and showed all of us”, Winston said, “and that was one of the first times when I was just like, ‘Man, I want to get me one of those rings'”.
Arians’ takeaway from what he’s seen in Winston’s development?
Back at that camp, even at such a young age, Winston made an impression. “I still haven’t gotten one yet, so I’m shooting for that”. “He’s probably just saying that”, Winston said.
A loss to Winston and the Bucs could put a serious crimp into the Cardinals’ title hopes after they almost got their a year ago, going 13-3 during the regular season and advancing to the NFC Championship before getting flattened by the Carolina Panthers.
RETURN TO THE DESERT: Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Dirk Koetter knows the Arizona desert all too well.
Arizona defense, which excelled at forcing turnovers a year ago, can be just as risky, Koetter said. He’s still a 230-pound quarterback.
CARDINALS defense allowed Patriots 363 total yards and 10-of-16 third-down conversions in Week 1. “We had a bunch of local kids there and one of his high school coaches was a good friend of mine, so we’ve known him and watched him grow and we’re very, very proud of him”. I think it’s more about me getting back healthy, getting comfortable.
Koetter said he began to see strides in Wisnton’s game last season after a Week 4 loss to Carolina, in which he threw for 287 yards and two scores but was intercepted four times in a game that featured some nasty weather.
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That year is is also the last time the they owned a winning record. “I liked this guy a lot”, Koetter said. “I think that’s the biggest part”. He remains confident that his scheme will work, especially as younger players such as Beasley and a pair of rookie starting linebackers, De’Vondre Campbell and Deion Jones, get more experience.
