There's no easy way to put it, but the Tampa Bay Buccaneers had a very disappointing 2018-19 season. Most of the problems lie with the the Buccaneers' defense, but their offense was just as inconsistent despite starting their campaign strong.
Part of Tampa Bay's offensive explosion early last season was thanks to speedy wideout DeSean Jackson, who hauled in three touchdowns and had 100-yard receiving efforts in three of the team's first four games. However, when quarterback Jameis Winston returned from his four-game suspension, Jackson's production dipped, having failed to reach the 100-yard mark in each of the remaining regular season contests.
With new head coach Bruce Arians at the helm, drastic changes in the offensive roster are all but inevitable. As such, the 32-year-old Jackson is assumed to be one of the first names to go on the chopping block considering his lack of chemistry with Winston.
Despite the situation, Winston still had nothing but praise for his three-time Pro Bowl receiver regardless of their respective fates on the team. Speaking with NFL.com's Grant Gordon, the former No. 1 overall pick wasn't hesitant to express his admiration for Jackson for being a fiery competitor during their run as teammates.
“…the thing about having a guy like DeSean Jackson; he's passionate, he wants to win. When you have a guy like that, really winning and losing really separates how he's going to react. He wants to be an important part in winning football games and he knows that he is a very important piece to winning football games. So if we were winning, he's a selfless individual and he's fine. But when you're losing and the guy feels like he's not getting taking advantage of, of course he's going to have something to say. That's just his make-up.”
Jackson will be wrapping up the final year of his three-year deal in Tampa Bay this upcoming season, and it will be interesting to find out what Arians will do with his speedy wideout before the new season kicks off.
It's worth noting as well that Winston also mentioned that his new head coach has found more success with possession-centric wideouts over fast-streakers, meaning Jackson's career in the Sunshine State could very well be coming to an end.
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