Page 11 - Florida Sentinel 3-3-20

Sports
Bucs Considering Franchise Tag For Shaq Barrett
Winston Undergoes Surgery To Repair Torn Meniscus Ahead Of Free Agency
Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Win- ston had a career year in 2019 -- in both the best and worst senses. While the for- mer No. 1 overall pick led the league with 5,109 passing yards and threw a career-high 33 touchdowns, he also led the NFL with 30 intercep- tions.
According to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Net- work, Winston recently had surgery to trim a torn menis- cus -- an issue that he played through this past season. It's not the only injury Winston had to deal with in 2019, as he also fractured the thumb on his throwing hand late in the season. This offseason, Win- ston was seen sporting a hard cast to repair the injured thumb, and it's worth men- tioning that he threw 10 inter- ceptions after suffering the
JAMEIS WINSTON
break. Additionally, Win- ston underwent LASIK sur- gery to repair his eyesight.
Jameis Winston Donates to St. Jude's for Rich Eisen's 40-Yard Dash Event
One of the highlights of the NFL Scouting Combine every year is NFL Network host Rich Eisen running the 40-yard dash to raise money for St. Jude's Children's Hos-
pital.
Over the years, Eisen has
helped raise donations and awareness for the children and families at St. Jude's, all by putting his dignity on the line by running a 40-yard dash in his full professional TV host attire.
The latest NFL player to pitch in with a donation of his own? Bucs quarterback Jameis Winston.
Winston is set to become a free agent this offseason, and there seems to be a 50-50 shot at him returning to Tampa Bay as the Bucs' start- ing quarterback for a sixth season or more.
The Bucs have remained open to every possibility, but even if he's not back in Tampa Bay next season, at least he's still making a positive impact on others and using his re- sources to help those in need.
The Tampa Bay Bucca- neers have key offseason de- cisions ahead, and one big one may have major implica- tions on the rest of their ros- ter.
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Bucca- neers may use their franchise tag on defensive lineman Shaq Barrett if the two sides cannot reach a long- term deal. That would mean the Bucs have to find another way to retain Jameis Win- ston if they wish to do so.
Barrett has signaled his willingness to accept a
SHAQ BARRETT
hometown discount, but it doesn’t sound like that’s speeding up negotiations. After leading the NFL with 19.5 sacks last season, it’s quite clear that the Bucca- neers really don’t want to lose him.
Dak Prescott Could Get
$33M Via Exclusive
Franchise Tag From Cowboys
Jameis Winston Is Third
The Dallas Cowboys seem to have a plan in mind for Dak Prescott.
Prescott and Dallas have had contract talks re- garding a long-term deal but have thus far been unable to reach an agreement. Dallas is therefore likely to use a fran- chise tag to retain the quar- terback.
The Cowboys will likely use the exclusive franchise tag on Prescott.
Prescott would receive the average of the five high- est-paid quarterbacks in the NFL as of April, which is es-
Isaiah Simmons Tweets Hilarious Reaction To Impressive 40 Time
On ESPN's Ranking Of
2020 NFL Free-Agent
DAK PRESCOTT
timated to be $33 million. Receiving a franchise tag also would not prevent the two sides from reaching a long-term deal.
Quarterbacks
Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Win- ston had a well-documented 2019 campaign, throwing for 5,109 yards, 33 touchdowns and 30 interceptions.
It was a roller-coaster ride to say the least, but one thing Bucs fans can never say is that the team was boring to watch this year.
All jokes aside, Win- ston’s future may have al- ready been decided if Bruce Arians is to be believed. Winston could find himself back in Tampa Bay when it’s all said and done, or he could hit the open market as a 26- year-old quarterback coming off a 5,000-yard season. Turnovers aside, the talent and potential of Winston could very well entice teams to offer him a big-money contract.
According to Mike Clay of ESPN, Winston is the
ISAIAH SIMMONS
JAMEIS WINSTON
third-best QB free agent hit- ting the market, behind only Dak Prescott and Tom Brady, respectively.
Personally, everyone re- ally want to see Winston back in Tampa Bay, mainly because we are curious as to how he’ll perform in Year 2 under Arians. Plus, if he’s going to have a redemption story, it’d be great if he did it with the team that drafted him.
Isaiah Simmons is among the best defensive players in this year’s NFL Draft, and his performance at the NFL Combine only en- hanced his draft stock.
The former Clemson Tigers linebacker ran a 4.39 40 at the Combine Saturday, which is a pretty crazy num- ber for someone listed as 6- foot-4 and 230 pounds.
After his great 40 time, Simmons tweeted out a funny GIF. Check the version that has sound, it says “tell em to bring me my money!”
TUESDAY, MARCH 3, 2020 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 11