No. 1 quarterback prospect Jameis Winston was out on display in front of a host of NFL scouts today. It will be the last of such workouts as from here until the draft, it will be private workouts. And from what I saw, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers need to go ahead and give Winston his playbook.
Was his performance that great?
No, it wasn’t like Jamarcus Russell’s “greatest pro day ever” and that’s probably a good thing because we see how that turned out.
Was it that bad?
No, it wasn’t anything like Teddy Bridgewater’s either and isn’t it funny to see how he turned out so far?
Winston’s pro day was nothing to raise him up into the No. 1 quarterback spot if he wasn’t already there. And at the same time, it was nothing to make him slide down from the No. 1 spot he’s in. It was a marathon of a workout as he threw 102 passes to most pro days lasting around 60 passes.
Part of why Winston’s pro day wasn’t as good as it could have been is because they put some degree of difficulty in it. His camp chased him around and swung brooms and sticks at him, causing some discomfort. I believe they tried too hard to sell his mobility and all they had to do was allow scouts to watch the tape to assess that.
But once he was able to just drop back and throw the ball, he excelled, showing velocity, accuracy and touch. Just like he did during the season for the most part, he finished the pro day strong. But my true assessment of it all was it was another pro day, nothing spectacular or horrible and it will affect nothing.
But I have to say the if you’re a fan of Winston, you should be happy because he did show the ability to improve areas of his game. Where he had a bit of a wind-up during the year from his baseball days, he has a much more compact release now. But he was most impressive in the interview afterwards, when his charisma and football acumen were on display.
If he doesn’t go to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, I will be shocked.