FAB 4. Gruden Could Take Winston To The Next Level

Former Bucs quarterback Brad Johnson said it would take the right general manager and the right quarterback to lure Jon Gruden back to coaching. Jason Licht could be the right general manager (and should be given a contract extension) – and Jameis Winston is definitely the right quarterback for Gruden.

Gruden’s first exposure to Winston was during his QB Camp show on ESPN where he profiles, interviews and works with some of the top young quarterbacks coming out in the draft each year.

Jon Gruden and Jameis Winston on ESPN’s Gruden’s QB Camp – Photo courtesy of ESPN

Before the 2015 NFL Draft, Gruden went on record to say that he preferred to see the Bucs draft Marcus Mariota with the first overall selection. Of course Gruden wasn’t the coach in Tampa Bay at the time, either. I couldn’t see the animated Gruden having the patience to work with the quiet and reserved Mariota. Could you?

Gruden likes guys with juice – with energy. And Winston is full of juice.

Beginning with my pre-training camp interview with him for my SR’s Fab 5 column, Gruden couldn’t stop gushing about Winston.

“He’s the best player at the position we’ve had in franchise history,” Gruden told me. “That’s saying a lot. We’ve got World Champion Doug Williams and we’ve got World Champion Brad Johnson, but this guy is a spectacular talent. He’s the number one overall pick in the draft. He has that status, but he also has that talent that he’s lived up to.

“He’s a fierce competitor. He’s a showman. His recognition of defenses is stellar. The way he communicates what he wants is top notch. He’s got this showmanship to go out there, recognize defenses, on the road or at home, third down, red zone, two-minute – he can change a play, fix a play and then he has the talent to execute it. He’s a fierce competitor. He’s a very good athlete. He’s got great playing strength and he can make all of the throws.”

Don’t think Gruden would love a chance to work with this guy?

He was practically pleading his case on August 2 at his Bucs Ring of Honor press conference, often saying, “Man, I wish I had Jameis Winston” or “I’d love to work with Jameis Winston.”

You could even tell that he would love to coach Winston back in the spring of 2015. Go back and watch that edition of Gruden’s QB Camp from the video below.

Gruden loves Winston’s confidence. You could see it in their exchange about playing with confidence.

“I have the ultimate confidence in our players and I believe what I can do is get people to play higher than they what they are capable of playing by putting my trust in them,” Winston said.

Gruden is famous for saying that he doesn’t feel pressure – he applies pressure to others, notably the Bucs’ opponents, and wants his players to have the same approach.

“That’s the greatest compliment I could give you – you perform your best almost when the chips are on the line and the pressure is on, don’t you?” Gruden replied.

Gruden recently appeared on the Rich Eisen Show and was asked about Winston and the Bucs during their rough 3-6 start. His opinion of Tampa Bay’s young quarterback hasn’t changed a bit.

“Yeah, you can win around him,” Gruden said. “He won nine games last year in his second year. He’s obviously getting his eyes opened to how hard it is in the NFL. Hopefully, it’s a lesson for him and a lot of young players out there. This is a short trip to the penthouse to the outhouse, and from the outhouse to the penthouse. You can ask the Rams and you can ask the Jaguars. They have gone up in a rapid pace. And there have been times that have fallen out of the sky, as well.”

The 23-year old Winston is far from being a finished product and still needs to be continually developed. Gruden has accomplished a lot in his NFL coach career from taking two teams the playoffs to winning a Super Bowl in Tampa Bay. The one thing that has eluded him – the one box that still needs to be checked – is developing a young, star quarterback.

Gruden had a chance to draft a quarterback in the first round, but never did. Perhaps he didn’t want to swing and miss because he’s not the greatest talent evaluator and regret the pick. Instead, Gruden said his biggest regret as a head coach was drafting running back Carnell “Cadillac” Williams in the first round in 2005 instead of quarterback Aaron Rodgers. Gruden shouldn’t feel too bad. Twenty-four other teams passed on Rodgers, too.

Former Bucs head coach Jon Gruden and QB Brad Johnson – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

But now that Winston has shown he can have some success in the NFL, Gruden can work on the talent development, which he’s good at, rather than the talent evaluation, which he’s not. Gruden has a proven track record for developing quarterbacks and getting them to the next level.

He turned journeyman Rich Gannon into an MVP-caliber quarterback in Oakland. Gruden took an aging Brad Johnson and turned him into a Super Bowl champion. Gruden was also able to bring out the best in veterans Brian Griese and Jeff Garcia, and did the best he could with Chris Simms and his limited talent.

Winston has shown some modest improvement since entering the league three years ago, but not enough improvement to get the Bucs to the playoffs.

Bucs QB Jameis Winston Career Statistics
2015: 58.3 completion percentage, 4,042 yards, 22 TDs, 15 INTs
2016: 60.8 completion percentage, 4,090 yards, 28 TDs, 18 INTs
2017: 61.4 completion percentage, 1,920 yards, 10 TDs, 6 INTs

No one works more closely with quarterbacks than Gruden does. He’s a quarterbacks coach, offensive coordinator and head coach all rolled into one. That’s not to say that Koetter hasn’t done a good job with Winston, and Koetter did a fine job of developing David Garrard in Jacksonville and Matt Ryan in Atlanta.

Legendary Bucs DT Warren Sapp & Jon Gruden – Photo by: Getty Images

Sometimes a player needs a different voice, a different element, and a different coach to get them to the next level. That’s what the Glazers thought the franchise needed in 2002 when it replaced popular head coach Tony Dungy, the man who turned the Bucs around, with Gruden.

The first thing Gruden did after hiring a bunch of offensive coaches he’s never worked with before was to challenge the Bucs’ Super Bowl-ready defense. He pointed out that if Tampa Bay’s defense was so great, why hadn’t it been the top-ranked defense in the league?

Gruden told Pro Bowlers Warren Sapp, Derrick Brooks, Simeon Rice, Ronde Barber, John Lynch and the team’s other defenders that great defenses take the ball away and score touchdowns. Gruden challenged the defense to score nine defensive touchdowns and jaws dropped in the defensive meeting room, but they responded.

In 2001, the Bucs defense had 28 interceptions, 15 forced fumbles and two defensive scores and was ranked 26th in the league in total defense and eighth in scoring defense. In 2002, the year Gruden arrived and the Bucs won the Super Bowl, the defense had been ranked first in the league in total defense for the first time since 1979, and was also the top-ranked scoring defense. The Bucs had 31 interceptions, 18 forced fumbles and five defensive touchdowns in the regular season – then added nine more interceptions, five more forced fumbles and four more defensive touchdowns in three postseason games that year.

Imagine what kind of challenges Gruden could issue to the ultra-competitive Winston?

In the closing remarks of the Gruden’s QB Camp episode with Winston, Gruden gushed over the Florida State product.

ESPN’s Jon Gruden and QB Jameis Winston – Photo courtesy of ESPN

“We talked about energy and enthusiasm, and this kid had some vibe and some energy,” Gruden said. “That’s what you need from the practice field from somebody. … I think this kid has great stuff inside of him. Rare leadership, he’s got real charisma, and you see how the players are drawn to him. I think he can be something special.”

Winston was as giddy as a kid on Christmas morning after spending the day with Gruden.

“Being in there with Coach Gruden felt like my first pro football meeting,” Winston said. “I really enjoyed it and I’m going to look forward to doing this for a long time.”

When Gruden wrapped up his Bucs Ring of Honor press conference he wore his heart on his sleeve, telling the media: “feel like I’m still coaching. I feel like I could’ve gone out there today with a script. Then I see Jameis Winston and I was like, ‘Damn, I wish I had that guy.’”

Unless Koetter turns this season around quickly, Gruden’s wish might come true.