The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are set to be without starting quarterback Jameis Winston for the first three games of the season as he faces a suspension due to an alleged incident with an Uber driver. It won’t be the first time the Bucs will be without their star QB. They also lost Winston for three games last year due to a shoulder injury and needed backup Ryan Fitzpatrick to step up.
Quarterbacks coach Mike Bajakian sounds confident Fitzpatrick will be just fine deputizing for Winston since he didn’t see much of a drop-off from Winston to Fitzpatrick last season.
“Sure, he's got another year under the belt in this offense, which can only help, but at no point last year did I think he had a gap to close or anything,” Bajakian said per Jenna Laine of ESPN. “I mean, he came in, learned the offense quickly, was a great influence in the meeting room, and then when it came time for him to play he executed well.”
Fitzpatrick fared better than expected in his three starts as the Bucs went 2-1 in those games. He didn’t have outstanding numbers during that stretch－66-of-115 for 745 yards, three touchdowns and one interception－but the 14-year-old veteran was able to capably take what opposing defenses gave him.
Fitzpatrick and the Bucs will have an uphill battle to win any of their first three games this year, which are all against playoff teams－at the Saints, and at home against the Eagles and Steelers. But if Fitzpatrick can continue to play as effectively as he did last season, they could still pull off another surprise or two.
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