Jameis Winston has complicated feelings heading into Sunday’s game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The New Orleans Saints quarterback went to the Bucs with the No. 1 overall NFL Draft pick in 2015 and spent five seasons as the starter in Tampa Bay before being replaced after the 2019 season.
So Winston still has friends on the Bucs. He doesn’t want to give anyone any bulletin board material headed into Week 2. Yet he also has a regret about his time in Tampa Bay.
“I would never disrespect my teammates. I love my teammates,” Winston said, via ESPN. “But I wish I could have took them to that level that happened the next year. I still get motivated by that. And I still, I don’t think about it much. … That’s something that I wanted to build and to see it happen really made me more hungry.”
What happened that next year, of course, is that the Bucs brought in Tom Brady to replace Winston and he led Tampa Bay to a Super Bowl victory. Winston missed all the fun. Despite throwing for 5,109 yards and 33 touchdowns in 2019, Winston’s league-leading 30 interceptions led Tampa Bay to turn to Brady.
But don’t think Sunday’s contest against the Buccaneers is a “revenge game” for Winston.
“They’re just another team,” Winston said. “I’ve got a lot of respect for a lot of those players, some of my old teammates, but at the end of the day, it’s a division game going against the best in Tom Brady.”
Winston somehow has yet to play a full game against his old team despite the teams meeting five times since he switched sides. He suffered a season-ending ACL injury in a 36-27 victory over the Saints in Week 8 last year.
While Winston says the Bucs are just another team, Saints coach Dennis Allen knows his QB will have some extra motivation Sunday.
“I don’t want to speak for him, that would be unfair of me,” Allen said, “but I know if that was me, yeah, it probably would mean a little something extra.”
“But again, this week is about us competing against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers,” Winston said. “I’m here now, healthy and I’m ready to rock. That’s it.”
[ESPN]
About Arthur Weinstein
Arthur spends his free time traveling around the U.S. to sporting events, state and national parks, and in search of great restaurants off the beaten path.