Ex-Buccaneer Ronde Barber on Jameis Winston: 'He plays with zero fear'
After making him the No. 1 overall pick in this year's draft, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are hoping Jameis Winston will be the answer to the franchise's long-standing issues at the most important position on the field.
Evaluating Winston's play will have to wait for his first few seasons under center, but former Buccaneers cornerback Ronde Barber is impressed with what he's seen from the rookie quarterback thus far.
"He gives you the spectacular, but he also gives you the rookie," Barber said in an appearance on CBS Sports Radio, via JoeBucsFan.com. "But what I will say about (Jameis) is he plays with zero fear. He'll let go of any ball. He has that confidence.
"I've played against guys that have supreme confidence in themselves and their ability to make plays. You can already see it. He has no fear letting the ball go."
Though Barber conceded that Winston's unwavering confidence can work against him at times - as evidenced by turnover issues in his final season at Florida State - Barber believes Winston has the right mentality to make the most of his physical abilities as a passer.
"But he has that 'it,' that bravado, that gunslinger mentality, if I could use that tired-ass cliche, to be a great quarterback in this league. I think the good ones have that. Now how he learns to deal with that as a pro and take care of the football and do the right things on the football field? But he has the tools."
As is this case with any young signal-caller, Winston will almost certainly experience his share of difficulties while transitioning to the professional game.
Should he manage to maintain his confidence level throughout the challenging process, however, reaching his elite-level potential will become all the more likely.
As the Buccaneers have arguably lacked a franchise-caliber quarterback to this point in their history, Winston's development will determine whether or not they can end their seven-year playoff drought and set themselves up for long-term success.