Dungy did his best to sell Bucs coach Lovie Smith on Marcus Mariota

Dungy 'feels good' about WinstonRick Stroud, Times Staff WriterWednesday, May 6, 2015Tony Dungy said he 'feels good,' about the Bucs decision to draft Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston.JAMES BORCHUCK Dungy said did his best to sell Bucs coach Lovie Smith on Marcus Mariota. His son, Eric, was a teammate of Mariota's for three years at Oregon and now works in the Bucs data systems department. But Dungy is convinced the Bucs thoroughly researched both quarterbacks and chose the one that best fit their team and the offense."I talked to Lovie (Smith) way back a couple of months ago and I know they were going to research those two guys,'' Dungy said. "And I told them about Marcus and the experience I had with him and they looked at everything and were very thorough and got the guy they felt was the best for their offense and their attack. I feel good about it because I know how much they researched. I’m a Mariota guy because I saw him up close for three years and I saw what he did in that program and I know him personally. He’s the kind of kind of guy I would bet on. I was selfishly hoping it would be Marcus but I think Jameis is going to do well and I’ve talked to Marcus. I  know he’s excited about going to Tennessee.''Dungy said he would've been concerned about Winston's off-field incidents, including allegations of sexual assault. Without the facts that he believes the Bucs have, Dungy said he couldn't make an informed opinion about the Florida State quarterback.“I don’t know because I really didn’t look into it and investigate it,'' Dungy said of Winston's off-field incidents. "With all those incidents, they definitely would have had to have been investigated. I’ve talked to people I know at Florida State and trust really well and they had nothing but great things to say about the young man so I think there’s probably two sides to everything. Obviously, I would’ve been concerned and you research it just like the Bucs did and you make a decision.''Dungy said Winston has to accept he is a polarizing choice by the Bucs because of a series of off-field decisions at Florida State. Erica Kinsman has filed a civil suit claiming Winston sexually assaulted her."The thing Jameis has to realize is he’s not coming in a neutral situation with a clean slate,'' Dungy said. "He’s going to have to earn people’s trust and earn them over and he’ll only do that but it’s going to take some time. Everybody is going to sit here and see what happens next. They’re going to watch him through a magnifying glass so he has to understand that and we’ll see. Time will tell. But being in the community, you definitely have people on both sides.''Dungy said he knows Winston is a polarizing draft pick but trusts in the Bucs' ability to conduct a lengthy investigative process into his character."You have to understand that there are 32 teams and everybody has a different standard,' Dungy said. "All you can really go by is your team and how you investigate things and how you’re satisfied. We don’t really know how the other 31 teams looked at Jameis Winston. We know what the Bucs did and I know they were thorough and they came to the conclusion that he was okay and he was going to be fine. So as a fan, I’m going to have faith in them and their process.''Through All Pro Dads, Dungy is working with the Florida Coalition Against Domestic Violence in an attempt to educate young men on the proper way to be 'a gentleman,' and handle conflict, which is not through violence of any kind.“The focus and our hope is we’ve got to get the message across to men that we’ve got to teach our boys,'' Dungy said. "We don’t want to handle this at 22 years old with Jamies Winston or Frank Clark. We want to get the message to 7 year olds, 8 year olds, 9 year olds that, you know what? There’s a way that you’re going to grow up  in this society, there’s a way to be a gentleman, there’s a way to handle adversity and issues and violence is not that way whether it’s a domestic situation at home, whether it’s relationships at work or at school. Whether it’s relationships with authorities, if you become a policeman – it’s all the same.  There’s a way to react and respond and we’ve got to get that message to young people.''