data-mm-id=”_bpyqpdq11″>This season was a make-it-or-break-it year for Jameis Winston. The former No. 1 overall pick has been the definition of inconsistent over the course of his young career so far; for every off-balance but perfectly-placed deep ball, he'd throw two head-scratching interceptions. The franchise didn't extend Winston going into the final year of his contract and brought in noted QB guru Bruce Arians to see if Winston's flaws could be kept in check enough to allow his talents to shine. Well, it worked. Sort of. Winston has shown enough this year that the Bucs plan to bring him back for 2020, as reported by Ian Rapoport. The #Bucs are slated to bring back QB Jameis Winston for 2020, sources say. But how it happens — which tag — will be fascinating. My story: https://t.co/7MXeVva4RS— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) December 21, 2019A long-term contract does not seem to be in the cards, as Rapoport notes that the Bucs seem likely to use either the transition tag or the franchise tag on Winston. This seems to be the right move, because the jury is still out on the Florida State product. While Winston has been putting up some historic numbers, he hasn't fixed his turnover issue at all– between the interceptions and the fumbles, he's been responsible for 29 turnovers by himself this season. Tampa Bay definitely has something here. Winston's familiarity in the Arians system, combined with Chris Godwin's breakout, should make for a very dangerous offense next season. If he can keep the interception count to even below 20, he's an above-average starter whose capable of putting up video game numbers any given week. The franchise tag might be a little high, considering there hasn't been any proof that he can indeed keep the interceptions in check. He'd make $27 million on the franchise tag next year, which slots him at the same salary as Matthew Stafford. The potential is clearly there, though, and the Bucs don't have an obvious replacement in the wings. They won't end up with a high enough draft pick to even potentially steal a sliding Tua Tagovailoa, much less one of the other upper-echelon QB prospects in this year's draft. At the very least, Winston will be a good bridge while the team looks for a potential successor. But at only 25, Winston could be around for a while yet if he can figure it out.
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data-mm-id=”_sddhab5tg”>The Pac-12 followed the Big Ten's lead and has canceled non-conference athletic events for the fall. The decision was made during a Friday conference call and an official announcement followed. The sports impacted include football, men's and women's soccer and women's volleyball. Obviously football is the focus here as it is cash cow of athletic departments around the country. With the cancellations, games like the yearly matchup between USC and Notre Dame are now wiped from the schedule. That will have a massive financial impact for both schools. Further decisions about the schedule for fall sports and whether there will be any changes will be determined at a later date. It's safe to assume all of the major conferences will follow this …
data-mm-id=”_skuw1gw04″>In the history of sports, the argument over who's the GOAT can be debated. In the history of sports photos, however, there is no argument. There's only Neil Leifer's picture of Muhammad Ali standing over Sonny Liston. On this day in sports history, the famous Sports Illustrated photographer took that photo. The year was 1965. Ali was still in the early stages of his involvement with the Nation of Islam. He beat Liston in their first fight in 1964. There was controversy leading up to the rematch not only because of Ali's new allegiance and rumors that Liston threw the first fight, but also because Liston was arrested twice before the bout. As a result, the fight was moved to Lewiston, Maine. More Articles About Sports History:…
data-mm-id=”_cija30rza”>The New Orleans Pelicans didn't give Lonzo Ball a contract extension before Monday's deadline, which means he'll be a restricted free agent this offseason. Without a contract in hand for next year, the 23-year-old point guard will need to earn his next payday this season. Ball's career is now officially in his own hands. There will be no agreement on a rookie extension for Pelicans guard Lonzo Ball, @KlutchSports CEO Rich Paul tells ESPN. Ball will become a restricted free agent next summer. Both sides remain positive about the ability to move forward together, Paul tells ESPN.— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) December 21, 2020The Pelicans landed Ball from the Los Angeles Lakers as part of the blockbuster trade that sent Anthony Davis to LA b…
data-mm-id=”_yt9nj8qdi”>The Denver Nuggets had a nice run, but the clutch performance of Anthony Davis on the biggest stage of his career has put their season in peril yet again. In previous rounds the Nuggets fought back to advance and prove they were the present and future of the NBA, but running into LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers has them in danger of being labeled frauds just by losing to the better team.Previous examples of this took place in the first two rounds of the Western Conference Playoffs when the Lakers beat the Portland Trail Blazers and Houston Rockets. Coming into the NBA bubble and then the playoffs, the Blazers were touted as the toughest possible opponent for the top-seeded Lakers. The Damian Lillard-CJ McCollum backcourt teamed with the return of Jusuf N…
data-mm-id=”_bsmtmhxqu”>The Tuesday after the first Monday in the month of November will certainly create fireworks around the country. Outside of the Presidential election, however, things are expected to be quiet on the National Football League trade deadline front. Sharing the same day as the election this year, the NFL trade deadline is expected to be a dud based on the cold-water engulfing story Ian Rapoport published today. Top-tier targets like Matt Ryan, Julio Jones, and Sam Darnold aren't expected to be moved before the deadline, according to Rapoport. Even more disappointing, the second tier of trade targets like David Njoku, A.J. Green, and Evan Engram are also expected to stay put. Boringgggggggggg. The NFL trade deadline has traditionally been more subdued than the NB…
data-mm-id=”_xbxnnfe28″>The Tampa Bay Buccaneers took another step toward keeping the band together when they re-signed defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh to a one-year contract today. That continues their offseason concentration of re-signing the core players who helped lead them to the 2020 Super Bowl. But while it's fun to imagine what this team can do in its second act, history tells us the sequel is rarely as successful as the original.Anchorman 2 sucked. So did Coming 2 America and Major League 2. Godfather II was great, but that's because it had new star characters and a completely different storyline. The Bucs are basically trying to run it back with the same cast and storyline as act one. Again, good in theory, harder in practice. Lest you think I would only compare foot…
data-mm-id=”_d8ikfn4ou”>Here we are again, talking about where Brandin Cooks will play next. The 29-year-old wide receiver has been traded by three teams in eight NFL seasons and, if he had it his way, would've made it four last fall as he requested a trade from the Houston Texans multiple times. Hard to blame the guy. He's a good veteran wideout and the Texans were a bad, young dumpster fire with no hope of winning anything. Houston just couldn't get rid of him because his 2023 salary of $18 million was fully guaranteed, which was seen as too steep a price to pay on top of his 2022 salary and the draft picks necessary to get him. This offseason, Cooks should get his wish. The $18 million salary is now essentially an expiring contract since a team can cut him in 2024 wi…
data-mm-id=”_opyp93yh6″>If you've been paying attention to pop culture over the last year, you're aware that Welcome to Wrexham has become a breakout hit for FX. The docuseries follows Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney's purchase of fifth-tier Welsh soccer team Wrexham AFC and their attempts to rebuild the club and return it to prominence. The show has gained the club a large following in the U.S., but there's one problem: it's incredibly difficult to watch Wrexham's matches in America. That seems like a huge missed opportunity. On Tuesday, Wrexham faced Newcastle's U21 team in the group stage of the EFL Trophy tournament. Unfortunately, there was no way to watch the match in America. Wrexham won 1-0 but it was difficult to find any highlights or updat…
data-mm-id=”_kku5kc7j1″>The Indianapolis Colts and Cleveland Browns banded together to create pure chaos in the early window with a back-and-forth affair where points were given away like candy and the team with the ball last would prevail. Which made the controversial call that decided things even more crucial. With 47 seconds remaining, the Colts held a 38-33 lead over the Browns, who had P.J. Walker in for an injured (maybe) Deshaun Watson. Cleveland's red-zone play was blown up by linebacker E.J. Speed, who forced a fumble that was recovered by the Colts' DeForest Bucker. Which would have meant game over. But a dubious and painful illegal contact foul was levied on Darrell Baker Jr. in the end zone for briefly holding up Amari Cooper and that negated the big play. It sure…
data-mm-id=”_jsewj8xiw”>The Philadelphia Eagles' legendary slide into disgrace was finished on Monday at the hands of Baker Mayfield's Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Wild Card Round of the NFL playoffs. Philly started the season 10-1 and then lost five of its final six games along with a division title. There was not much optimism heading into Monday's contest but most figured the Birds would at least have a chance because they have the better quarterback and generally more talent. It turns out any and all hope was misplaced. Philadelphia lost, 32-9, and looked worse than its had at any point during the regular season. Most of the blame for that has to fall on Nick Sirianni. Not just because he's the head coach and thus the guy who takes the heat when things go poorly …