Vick praises Jameis Winston as the “future of the NFL”
Posted by Mike Florio on December 20, 2014, 6:37 PM EST
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vague sense has emerged in recent weeks that a draft-stock gap exists
between 2014 Heisman winner Marcus Mariota and 2013 Heisman winner
Jameis Winston. There indeed may be a gap by the time the 2015 draft
begins, and it may be Winston who’s the better player.Jets quarterback Mike Vick, the first overall pick in the draft nearly 14 years ago, recently heaped praise on Winston.
“He may make some poor decisions, but he gets on that football field and he plays his ass off,” Vick said, via Darryl Slater of NJ.com. “Yeah, he can mature. He’ll mature. I see him maturing as time goes on. Like, this year hasn’t been as bad of a year as the first year was for Jameis. I think the kid will continue to improve. I think he’s the future of the NFL.”
This year hasn’t been perfect, though. The offseason featured the crab-leg caper. Then, Winston was suspended for a game after yelling an obscene phrase on campus. He nevertheless dressed for the game and entered the field in full uniform before being sent back inside. More recently, Winston placed his hands on and physically moved an official who was delaying the snap.
As a result, Winston will attract plenty of attention, wherever he goes. And that could make it difficult for him to thrive with a team like the Jets.
“I think it’s hard,” Vick said. “I think his support cast just has to be around him. You can’t put him in a room with a group of young guys. . . . The more veterans around, the more he’ll pick up on things and he’ll mature quickly. That’s the trend I’ve been around since I’ve been in the league.”
For Winston, the trend at the college level has been to win, each and every week. He’s 29-0. A win over Mariota and Oregon will move him to 30-0 and commence talk that, despite Mariota’s accomplishments, perhaps Winston is the better NFL prospect.
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72 Responses to “Vick praises Jameis Winston as the “future of the NFL””
His future looks as bright as Vince Young’s once did, oh wait…
Yeah, Mike, he’s a solid franchise QB. Exactly like Luck and Rodgers.
I mean…what QB hasn’t stole some crab legs in their youth? They all mature, you just have to have those veterans around to make sure they don’t break the law. That’s what true veteran leadership is all about.
anyone else notice a trend of players who dominate college football forget about hard work somewhere along the lines of all their national attention and success only to get a rude awakening when they get to the NFL?
Janis Winston is next
Winston is a straight up stud with the pigskin and has all of the intangibles ON THE FIELD. The risk is worth the reward with this kid
nope.
this kid has to grow up, he can’t even hide it like Griffin did, so good luck with this one. I really hope my team stays away, I’d rather try to revive RGIII’s struggling career than mess with winston.
Btw, love Mariota, but, purely from a football standpoint, Winston’s better. That said, I’d take Mariota over him any day of the week.
No. But he might be the “future of the Arena League”.
Vick is an idiot.
Seems to me the best performers in the NFL and the teams that consistently WIN year in and out, follow the old way of doing things?
Good QB who can pass first and maybe run second, solid line play on both sides of the ball and a defense that doesn’t give up the big play = superbowl win.
Everytime we’re told it’s something else as the future – they flash then suck. Vick, Kaep, Cam, RG3-out, wildcat offenses etc.
Some athletic QB is better than a QB with brains who can read defenses.
Dec 20, 2014 8:57 PM
Some people just don’t get it. The position of NFL QB is played between the ears. Winston is another Ryan Leaf, JaMarcus Russell. Lots of physical ability, but zero mental. Watch the tape of this kid at FSU. He’s dumber than dumb. He might be a good kid, a smart person or even a high academic achiever, but he plays QB like a big dummy. He makes the worst decisions I think I’ve ever seen. He won’t get away with them in the NFL. He will get a coach or two fired if he’s a high pick.
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You may be the only “analyst” in the country who says he’s dumb on the field.
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i have many problems with this….1) One thing i can’t question about RG3 is his character. i think the media mis-quotes him a lot and that’s one reason why he’s now not answering questions to the media like he USED to and i hope he keeps that up….2) i am not a fan of RG3 and Winston comparisons. honestly, i’m not a fan of comparing Winston to RG3, Vince Young, Newton, Kaepernick or Manziel. Firstly, Cam Newton’s VERY underrated. he would be much better if he were on a team like the 49ers….now the reason why i hate the comparisons. Newton, Griffin, Manziel and Kaepernick came from designed for college offenses that didnt help prepare a QB for the NFL. Winston, however, should be MUCH prepared for the nfl as a Quarterback. the issue isn’t his ability to play, to me, it’s character and THAT is why i agree in the sense that i would just try to develop RG3 than draft Winston. Winston’s immature off the field and that’s a major red flag.
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Steve Young. Aaron Rodgers.
BUT
They are read the d, pass first, then run when everything else is exhausted. Even Luck runs when he has to.
However – it seems to me that the way to be successful as an NFL QB is to be the kinda guy who is in the building at 5AM every day, working your a$$ off. Physical ability will only take you so far and when you run, then are 11 guys as fast as you on defense trying to crunch you like an accordion.
actually if they all flame out you can say he didnt prepare them…. What you can say is that he was able to get the most out of them.
that being said, i didnt realize he was at LSU, I thought he was Bowdens life long Offensive C.
If we can…forget what Vick did…he has been a responsible player and can use his new found wisdom to help others not make major mistakes (hopefully).
If I were an NFL team – I’d be more concerned about the character issues than the talent issue – what happens when this kid has money (or..well, more money than FSU was paying)? The best…are humble and have respect for their talent – this kid, uhhh…no. He’s another Leaf – all talent – no head. Adversity…will destroy him.
There are so many distractions in Tampa Bay for a young man with new wealth. Once he discovers the strip clubs…
How will he handle being on a team that loses 3-6 games in a row? And the Buccaneers certainly don’t have a stellar offensive staff or plan.
Trade down Buccaneers and accumulate draft picks.
Did Vick hang out with “veterans” of federal lockup and mature there? Because he sure wasn’t very mature before that.