Get your popcorn ready. Please prepare some extra snacks for the guests. Tampa Bay Buccaneers fans aren’t the only parties viewing this Jameis Winston vs Ryan Fitzpatrick saga.
Tennessee Titans supporters are familiar with both the 2015 No. 1 pick and the almost 36-year-old journeyman quarterback. These fans often compare Marcus Mariota and Winston. That’s because Winston was the only player selected ahead of Mariota in that draft. Additionally, Tennessee fans are familiar with Fitzpatrick from a 2013 season where each pass had fans switching from Fitzmagic to Fitztragic.
Why not insert a third reason of interest? This situation poses many similarities to what Tennessee faced when Kerry Collins replaced Vince Young during the 2008-09 NFL season. Collins was the veteran quarterback who was about to turn 36. Young was the former high draft pick. One was the white quarterback who was a respected veteran. The other was the black quarterback who, while young and super talented, displayed immaturity and questionable decision-making abilities.
Neither Young nor Winston were supposed to lose their starting roles. Young lost his job after an MCL sprain allowed Collins to finish Week 1. Collins hid behind a powerful run game and suffocating defense en route to a 10-0 start. The Titans earned the AFC’s No. 1 seed. Young didn’t recapture the starting job until Week 8 of the following season.
That’s not the same as Winston and Fitzpatrick. An NFL personal conduct policy violation meant Winston was suspended three games. Fitzpatrick led two victories against heavily favored opponents. Those wins came against the New Orleans Saints and defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles. During a Sep. 24 Monday Night Football broadcast against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Fitzpatrick will aim for a 3-0 start.
What about the connection between Vince Young and Fitzpatrick? Young quoted in 2017:
I’d see a quarterback and be like, Dude is garbage, and I’m over here in the kitchen cooking turkey necks!?” … Exactly. I hate to name-drop, but [Ryan] Fitzpatrick is still playing!? He leads the league in interceptions, and he’s still f—— getting paid? I mean, what the f— is going on?”
Quarterback and coach quarrels appeared evident for both franchises. Tensions between Young and former Titans head coach Jeff Fisher are well-known. On December 2017, NFL’s Ian Rapoport reported that the relationship between Jameis Winston and Buccaneers head coach Dirk Koetter is “not in a good place, there’s definitely some tension there.”
One thing’s for sure: Coach Koetter must win in 2018. Potential doesn’t win games. He’ll play the quarterback whom he feels gives him long-term job security.
If Fitzpatrick leads Tampa Bay to 3-0, then how could Koetter give the job back to Jameis Winston? Nobody more than Winston wants to see this team walk the plank into a sea of Terrible Towels.
Can Fitzpatrick continue this winning streak for much longer? Don’t get your hopes up. Running back Peyton Barber has 35 carries for 91 yards. That isn’t exactly Thunder and Lightning featuring Chris Johnson and LenDale White. Through two games, the Buccaneers defense has surrendered 30.5 points per game. The 2008 Titans defense surrendered fewer than 15 points per game.
Regression is imminent. Fitzpatrick won’t continue averaging 151.5 quarterback ratings. His career average: 81.1. Becoming NFC South champions will require a much more complete effort than a quarterback playing defenses set on rookie mode.
This 2-0 start is fool’s gold. Fitzpatrick was fortunate to wreak havoc against weak defensive backfields. Entering Week 4, Fitzpatrick should remain starter. He might keep it all season. It won’t matter. These Buccaneers will soon walk the plank, just like they always do.
What if they don’t? I guess I’ll have to eat crow—or in the NFC South’s case—falcon. Pescetarians don’t eat bird meat though. Does Falcon come in soy?
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Joshua Huffman was born and edumacated in Middle Tennessee. He has published content for Yahoo! Sports (via Contributor Network) and Titan Sized, among other venues. At SoBros, he’ll provide Daily Fantasy Sports suggestions and broad sports coverage.Follow him on Twitter.
