Lynch Sees Himself In Jameis
January 22nd, 2016
Bucs legend John Lynch says the fire Jameis Winston has to win is a lot like his as a young player.
Bucs legend, soon-to-be inductee into the Buccaneers Ring of Honor, and maybe Pro Football Hall of Famer John Lynch was both a vocal supporter of Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota and an opponent of Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston, America’s Quarterback, prior to the 2015 NFL draft.
In fact, today Lynch admitted to a gaggle of local reporters he was on record saying the Bucs made a mistake, a big mistake, in drafting Jameis.
Some nine months later, Lynch, with a smile on his face, confessed, mea culpa.
Lynch is now a Jameis fan and believes Jameis can lead the Bucs to big things. Perhaps the element that changed Lynch’s mind was is Jameis reminds Lynch of himself as a young player with his passion and drive and will to win.
“Very impressed!” Lynch said of Jameis’ rookie year. “I was on record thinking, I thought [the Bucs] made the wrong decision and I thought Mariota was the better choice. But [Jameis] has made it close [laughs]. You see what he does on the field and the talent. But I think he has some qualities in terms of leadership and some of those things I was talking about as a young guy, not being afraid to take over a team. I saw some of that from him.
“He has a lot of qualities I like. I think he has a real bright future. I think he has a head coach now, who was his coordintaor, who understands how to get the best out of a young quarterback. I am really excited to see his growth.”
It is good to see so many open-minded folks have seen the light. Just the way Lynch spoke, Joe guesses Lynch did not meet Jameis before the draft.
Talk to people that studied Jameis or investigated him; the people that knew him said his intangibles were through the roof.
Now, Bucs fans have seen those qualities and understand what a prize the Bucs got.
Thank goodness Lovie Smith didn’t listen to all the naysayers.
January 22nd, 2016 at 4:31 pm
I always appreciate people actually speak their mind and don’t just try to make friends by saying boring things. It’s also nice to see people can change their mind if the circumstances justify it, and I think Winston has done that thus far.
January 22nd, 2016 at 4:45 pm
Where is Mariota now a days? Is he still in the league? BAH HAHAHA. The coach-killer. Couldn’t even finish the season, I tried to tell youz.
January 22nd, 2016 at 4:47 pm
I thought Mariota was the better choice. But [Jameis] has made it close [laughs].
I did not see Lynch answering this on camera…didn’t see the body language or what type of “laugh” he had at the end.
But if you simply read the words and what they mean…he’s saying yes he made a mistake about #3 but he’s still not ready to pronounce #3 as better than Mariota…but that he’s made it close.
Not that it’s a big deal except for the Nole fans who feel #3 never get his due respect.
I do not care about the MM-JW comparisons. I’m happy with OUR QB…but this blog seems to obsess on it.
January 22nd, 2016 at 4:52 pm
Because he wasn’t. He busted out laughing, admitting he was wrong about Jameis, who won over Lynch.
January 22nd, 2016 at 4:52 pm
I’ll admit I’m obsessed and will never drop it. It was an ugly ugly fight last spring as you well know and as they say – to the victor go the spoils.
January 22nd, 2016 at 4:57 pm
I think many of us felt that he still lacked maturity coming into the league..maybe I went by my own son’s age..maybe I felt that he wouldn’t show leadership skills at that age..
But heck, was I wrong! Now I use him as an example in my own home everyday!
I swear I love this kid..yeah, kid..anyone under 30 to me is a kid…lol…but a damn good one!
January 22nd, 2016 at 4:58 pm
LifeOfABucFan:
Cool story. 🙂
January 22nd, 2016 at 5:11 pm
“Talk to people that studied Jameis, or investigated him; the people that knew him said his intangibles were through the roof.”
Like me.
January 22nd, 2016 at 5:21 pm
DB55…I still have to defend this kid off of JBF.
My uncle loves to run his mouth about Jameis. It’s okay though as I have plenty of ammo to fire back at him and put him in his rightful place.
My favorite defense is. The kid had more academic awards in elementary school and high school than athletic awards.
Stops em cold in their tracks.
January 22nd, 2016 at 5:36 pm
@Joe
Thanks for the clarification. That’s why I prefaced my observation that I did not see him and figured he might just be pranking himself.
January 22nd, 2016 at 6:01 pm
87
Me too! Some people will never like Jameis no matter what!!
January 22nd, 2016 at 6:18 pm
I don’t care if he’s one of our legends, but Lynch, just like many others who have placed Mariota ahead of Winston, will be proven wrong.
January 22nd, 2016 at 6:24 pm
Buc1987 Says:
January 22nd, 2016 at 5:21 pm
My favorite defense is. The kid had more academic awards in elementary school and high school than athletic awards.
Stops em cold in their tracks.
Ahhh! I didn’t even know that myself..good stuff!
January 22nd, 2016 at 6:45 pm
“Jameis reminds Lynch of himself as a young player with his passion and drive and will to win.”
That’s a bit of a weird comparison – considering Winston is a QB and the #1 overall pick who played every down his rookie year and had the 3rd best statistical year for a rookie QB in NFL history.
Lynch was a late 3rd round pick and barely saw the field until his 3rd year.
Just sayin.
Lynch was a great Buccaneer though and deserves a lot of respect for all he did for this franchise and for having carved himself out a legit HOF career. He seems like a great dude too.
Congrats on your induction into the Buccaneers Ring of Honor John and hopefully you will get that gold jacket you rightfully earned one of these days.
January 22nd, 2016 at 7:44 pm
all of this “fire” talk means NOTHING until we win. Let’s all remember that we were 6-6 and then two things happened. First, JW was HORRIBLE in the first half of the last 4 games and Lovie’s defense was PUTRID. The Joes seem to remember the defense but conveniently forget JW stinking up the joint. And don’t quote JW stats over the last 4 games. Go back and look at the games. JW stats a disaster in the first half and then GREAT in meaningless mop up time. And forget the Luck comparisons. Similar stats but Luck won despite having a bad defense.
January 22nd, 2016 at 8:02 pm
Interesting that Lynch said that JW has a coach NOW…… doesn’t sound like a vote of confidence for Lovie…….
January 22nd, 2016 at 8:10 pm
Buttnut is still whining….
It’s an ongoing thing since last April. Stay tuned and stock up on cheese.
January 22nd, 2016 at 8:14 pm
Whining=telling the truth. more of the truth is needed on this site.
January 22nd, 2016 at 8:18 pm
And guess what #3 has a name. It is Jameis Winston. Most of us are proud to say and write his name.
January 22nd, 2016 at 8:22 pm
Bucnut:
Joe has written (and spoken repeatedly on radio) Jameis struggled without VJax and having to throw to two undrafted rookies.
Let Joe know what sadsack loser QB you’d prefer over Jameis.
Is Tavaris Jackson a free agent? Christian Ponder?
January 22nd, 2016 at 8:26 pm
I like Jamies. Just don think he is GOD yet. And but the way, MM did not even have a Evans to throw to let alone Evans AND V-jax. In addition, he did not have a PRO BOWL running back. JW had plenty of weapons and was good but NOT great. Look a the tape, JW was pretty suspect in the last 4 games.
January 22nd, 2016 at 8:29 pm
I’m just being real. The “fire” hype is BS. JW had plenty of “fire” the last 4 games and we lost all of them.
January 22nd, 2016 at 8:37 pm
crickets
January 22nd, 2016 at 8:38 pm
Bucnut…do I have to bring up your hatred for Jameis? Do I have to dig through the archives again? It’s well documented.
January 22nd, 2016 at 8:39 pm
You’re going to get crickets…Friday night is the slowest night on JBF.
January 22nd, 2016 at 8:45 pm
I dont hate JW at all. I’m on the record as preferring MM. I WANT JW to be successful. I just think we need a balanced view. He had a good season but is NOT a franchise QB YET. Remember Josh Freeman? He threw 25 TD’s and 6 picks in one season. I just think the jury is still out and this leadership/fire BS is way overrated. It only matters if a player performs. And in the MOST important part of the season, with the playoffs on the line, JW played poorly and is PART, not all, of the reason we sucked down the stretch. That is undeniable and something NO ONE is talking about.
January 22nd, 2016 at 8:52 pm
1987-thanks for your response. Enjoy your night!
January 22nd, 2016 at 9:19 pm
I’m kind of busy right now, but if you want a quick response…
DB55 Says:
January 22nd, 2016 at 6:01 pm
87
Me too! Some people will never like Jameis no matter what!!
January 22nd, 2016 at 9:56 pm
Bucnut is obviously one of the “Mariota clingers” that 87 was talking about for quite awhile this season.
Dude – if you are a Bucs fan – why would you even be mentioning Mariota’s name at this point?
Jameis (statistically) had the 3rd best season that an NFL rookie has EVER had in the NFL. EVER.
Winston made more “WOW” plays and throws this last year than we have seen from every Bucs QB combined over the last 10+ years.
But you still don’t see a franchise QB (yet) – LOL SMH
I can only guess that either you are a WAY bigger UF fan than you are a Bucs fan and thus have perpetual bias – or that the eye holes in your pointed white hood need enlarging.
January 23rd, 2016 at 4:10 am
QBs only become elite when paired with a great coach. I believe Jameis has that in Koetter. MM doesn’t, at least not yet. The fact that Jameis played every snap leads me to believe we made the right choice. Very impressive showing for a rookie. If this is the base that he will build on, we have a very bright future as Buc fans. Any concerns about his character should be long gone by now. Imagine what the Bucs could do with even a mediocre defense. I like what’s happening in Tampa right now.
January 23rd, 2016 at 7:03 am
Bucnut if you watched the games Jamie’s rarely had Evans and VJAX on the same field during the same game. Let alone, as we all know he hardly had ASJ. Man I’m gonna just stop.
January 23rd, 2016 at 8:08 am
Where and when did Lynch say he saw himself in Jameis? I didn’t read that at all nor do I recall Lynch taking over the team with leadership when he was a young player. Lynch didn’t establish himself until 1997 or so and he was drafted in 94,,,or was it 93?
January 23rd, 2016 at 8:45 am
There are SOOOOO many ways that article title could be taken…
January 23rd, 2016 at 9:28 am
Pickgrin…it’s obvious isn’t it. The most obvious thing about him is that that he rarely comments about anything else. Check the other threads. He’s NOT there.
Yet he’ll tell you he’s just trying to keep balance…and give a different point of view. I hope I can eventually just ignore his ignorance someday, but right now it’s just not in me.
January 23rd, 2016 at 9:30 am
As a matter of fact. Check the archives to see if he posts about other topics.
January 23rd, 2016 at 11:15 am
Find me one local or national writer, former player, or analyst with a view similar to Bucnut.
What’s that? You can’t find any, you say?
Exactly. Some people just can’t get past that fateful evening on April 30, 2015. The Bucs found a franchise QB, and crushed the dreams of Bucnut, and at least 4 more people.
“Bucnut2 Says:
September 20th, 2015 at 5:33 pm
his guy has big time issues, slow release bad feet and limited field vision. You’l seen when we are drafting the BUCS next QB in 3 years”
LOL
January 23rd, 2016 at 3:39 pm
@Joe I would sign Ponder as a backup in a heart beat.
January 24th, 2016 at 11:54 am
Okay Bucnut I was doing some thinking and since this thread is still up and running on the first page I have an answer for your foolishness.
The last 4 games mean NOTHING to me, because Winston already exceeded my expectations way before the 6-6 record.
He’ll NEVER meet your expectations. Never. Not 5 years from now, not 10 years from now. When you’re ignorant, you’re ignorant.