Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston is reportedly prepared to leave the team once NFL free agency opens on March 18th. According to NBC Sports' Peter King, Winston will "likely" leave Tampa ahead of the 2020 NFL season, though King doubts that the FSU product will be able to find a starting role elsewhere.
Winston, 26, led the league with 5,109 passing yards last season and finished second in passing touchdowns (33), trailing only NFL MVP Lamar Jackson, who tossed 36 TDs. Of course, Winston also threw an NFL-high 30 interceptions, becoming the first player in league history to throw 30 TDs and 30 picks in the same season.
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The Jameis Winston experience is an absolute roller coaster, as Bucs fans (and fantasy football owners) know all too well. Assuming he does leave Tampa, the franchise that drafted him No. 1 overall in the 2015 NFL Draft, it'll be interesting to see which team takes a gamble on him. That said, King notes that there aren't really any options for Winston to step in and be a starter, so he anticipates the turnover-prone QB to be a backup if he does indeed leave Tampa.
Bucs head coach Bruce Arians offered the following about the team's plans for free agency.
"We have a plan, we're just not telling anybody...we know what we're gonna do. We still just gotta see who else is available," Arians said Tuesday on NFL Network. "Because you have to do your due diligence. You don't really know who is available until the tags come out and all that stuff, if there is a guy really on the market."