In The Trenches With Ian Beckles
Fitzpatrick vs. Winston Decision Looms For Bucs

I’m normally a cut-and-dry, black-and-white kind of guy. I find that my answer to the question “Who is going to start at quarterback when Jameis Winston is done with his three-game suspension?” seems to be changing by the week.

The questions about whether Winston would still be the Buccaneers’ field general after the mistreatment of a female UBER driver two years ago surfaced almost immediately when the report came out and the suspension was handed down by the league. Initially, I became angered – questioning the allegiance and intelligence of the alleged Bucs fan asking such a ridiculous question like, “Will Winston still be our starter after his suspension?”

I rarely change my mind and I’m very hard to sway, but after our Buccaneers failed to put the likeness of No. 3 on the side of Raymond James Stadium and the way the 35-year old journeyman Ryan Fitzpatrick played in a rousing 48-40, Week One upset in New Orleans, I’m not sure anymore.

Bucs QBs Ryan Fitzpatrick and Jameis Winston – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Should we be hoping for Fitzpatrick, who has been on seven different teams in 14 years to overthrow Winston as the team’s starting quarterback this year? Should we hope that Fitzpatrick, who was let go by a New York Jets team that started Josh McCown last year in Fitzy’s place, becomes “the man” in Tampa Bay? I don’t know anymore.

Before the game I warned Tampa Bay fans not to overreact over one game – and here I am overreacting.

Fitzpatrick just outdueled Saints’ future Hall of Famer Drew Brees in his building. Fitzy was accurate in throwing for a career-high 417 yards and four touchdowns while completing 75 percent of his passes. He pulled the ball down and ran on numerous occasions and his decision-making was immaculate.

It was nice to see a QB that made definitive decisions instead of shaking our head when Winston throws a ball off his back foot and into traffic. All Fitzpatrick did was play a flawless game in a hostile environment against a Super Bowl contender, move the chains consistently all day and competed like a rookie trying to keep his roster spot.

Fitzpatrick’s old legs and mature football intellect knew when the Saints had the right defense called, but instead of forcing the ball in double coverage like Winston might have done, the veteran tucked the ball and ran on 12 different occasions for 36 hard-fought, chain-moving yards, including a 3-yard touchdown in the first half.

Bucs QB Ryan Fitzpatrick – Photo by: Mary Holt/PR

Can you imagine the feeling in Winston’s living room as he watched Fitzpatrick shred the Saints defense drive after drive after drive? I’m positive Winston wanted the Buccaneers to win, but I’m not sure that he wanted Fitzpatrick to the best player on the field on either sider of the ball on Sunday.

This article may be obsolete and overblown in a couple weeks because the Bucs schedule doesn’t get any easier with home games against Super Bowl champion Philadelphia and a Monday Night Football game against Pittsburgh. An abysmal outing at home against the Eagles or a hiccup versus the Steelers and Winston may once again become our savior.

But as of right now, head coach Dirk Koetter and general manager Jason Licht appear to have a tough decision to make when Winston returns to the starting lineup. Winston has been the reason why the Bucs have a bright future, but he may not be the Bucs best choice at quarterback today if Fitz keeps playing like this.

Putting Winston back in at the helm may cause a bit of a ruckus in the locker room as well. Mike Evans, DeSean Jackson and O.J. Howard sure looked comfortable catching balls from ol’ Fitzpatrick – especially the deep balls that Winston has struggled to connect with.

Benching our franchise quarterback might sound like an easy task to us Bucs fans after a stunning Week 1 performance from Fitzpatrick, but if the team makes that choice and Fitzy doesn’t end up being “the man” all year, Koetter and Licht can kiss their asses goodbye.

I hope Koetter has the toughest decision of his career in two weeks. That would mean that Fitzpatrick has held his own against the Eagles and Steelers at home and that the Bucs are either 3-0 or 2-1 when Winston’s suspension ends.

Ian Beckles is a PewterReport.com contributing writer and a former Buccaneers guard. Beckles was a starting guard in the NFL playing nine years, including his first seven in Tampa Bay from 1990-95. Beckles’ In The Trenches column appears on PewterReport.com every Monday night during football season.

Since retiring from football Beckles has become a local celebrity and forged a sports radio career, now hosting The Ian Beckles Show on Sundays from 11:00 am – 1:00 pm on 102.5 The Bone in Tampa. Beckles also hosts the popular In The Trenches Podcast. Follow Beckles on Twitter by clicking here.