The Tampa Bay Buccaneers lost to the Indianapolis Colts, 25-12, on Sunday to snap a two-game winning streak and drop to 5-6. Here are some of the more notable statistics and milestones from Sunday's big win:
It's safe to say that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers didn't draft Jameis Winston first overall for his running ability. Winston's pre-draft scouting report on NFL.com contained this tidbit: "Lacks athleticism to extend plays for very long outside of the pocket." And yet the Buccaneers' impressive rookie quarterback continues to make meaningful plays with his legs…and maybe more importantly his sheer will.
Winston did so two more times in Sunday's win over the Atlanta Falcons. He scored the game's first points on a five-yard touchdown run when a designed rollout play presented him with no good throwing options but one narrow lane to the end zone. He took the latter and dived over the goal line underneath a pair of converging defenders. Later, while leading the Bucs on a game-winning touchdown drive late in the fourth quarter, Winston converted a third-and-19 with an improbably second-effort run for 20 yards.
Winston has certainly displayed a nose for the end zone, having scored five rushing touchdowns this season. That's the second-highest total among all NFL quarterbacks this season.
Most Rushing Touchdowns, Quarterbacks, 2015
Player |
Team |
Rush TDs |
|
Carolina |
7 |
2. Jameis Winston |
Tampa Bay |
5 |
3t. Tom Brady |
New England |
3 |
3t. Kirk Cousins |
Washington |
3 |
3t. Andy Dalton |
Cincinnati |
3 |
3t. Joe Flacco |
Baltimore |
3 |
3t. Tyrod Taylor |
Buffalo |
3 |
Now forget the fact that Winston is a quarterback (if you can)…his five rushing touchdowns are tied for third among all NFL rookies this year, no matter the position, and he's just one off the lead.
Most Rushing Touchdowns, Rookies, 2015
Player |
Pos. |
Team |
Rush TDs |
1t. Todd Gurley |
RB |
St. Louis |
6 |
1t. Jeremy Langford |
RB |
Chicago |
6 |
2t. Jameis Winston |
QB |
Tampa Bay |
5 |
2t. Karlos Williams |
RB |
Buffalo |
5 |
5t. David Johnson |
RB |
Arizona |
4 |
5t. Thomas Rawls |
RB |
Seattle |
4 |
Not surprisingly, Winston's rash of rushing TDs is making a mark in the Buccaneers' own record book. Several marks, that is. First of all, he has four games left in 2015 and a chance to break the team's record for most rushing touchdowns in a single season by a quarterback. He's already tied the mark, which was first established by a quarterback who was known for his rushing ability.
Most Rushing Touchdowns, Buccaneers QB, Single Season
Player |
Season |
Rush TDs |
1t. Jameis Winston |
2015 |
5 |
1t. Shaun King |
2000 |
5 |
1t. Steve Young |
1986 |
5 |
4t. Josh Freeman |
2011 |
4 |
4t. Doug Williams |
1980 |
4 |
4t. Doug Williams |
1981 |
4 |
Fittingly, Winston got his record-tying score on a day that the team inducted former Buccaneers QB Doug Williams into its Ring of Honor at halftime. Williams happens to hold the Bucs' career record for rushing scores by a quarterback, but Winston has needed just 12 games to rise all the way into a tie for third on that chart, with second place just ahead.
Most Rushing Touchdowns, Buccaneers QB, Career
Player |
Seasons |
Rush TDs |
|
1978-82 |
13 |
|
1985-86 |
6 |
3t. Jameis Winston |
2015 |
5 |
3t. Shaun King |
1999-03 |
5 |
3t. Trent Dilfer |
1994-99 |
5 |
3t. Vinny Testaverde |
1987-92 |
5 |
Oh, Winston threw the ball on occasion against the Falcons, too. His last pass of the day, for instance, was a five-yard touchdown connection with WR Mike Evans that produced the game-winning points with less than two minutes to play. That's already the third time in just 12 career games that Winston has directed a game-winning march, defined as an offensive scoring drive in the fourth quarter or overtime that gives the team a lead it will not relinquish. Winston had previously directed such drives against Atlanta in Week Eight and Dallas in Week 10.
According to Pro Football Reference, which tracks game-winning drives (and has Peyton Manning as the career leader with 54), Winston is one of nine quarterbacks this season who has directed at least three such drives. No player has more than four.
Most Game-Winning Drives, 2015
Player |
Team |
GWDs |
1t. Blake Bortles |
Jacksonville |
4 |
1t. Matt Ryan |
Atlanta |
4 |
3t. Jameis Winston |
Tampa Bay |
3 |
3t. Jay Cutler |
Chicago |
3 |
3t. Andy Dalton |
Cincinnati |
3 |
3t. Joe Flacco |
Baltimore |
3 |
3t. Peyton Manning |
Denver |
3 |
3t. Cam Newton |
Carolina |
3 |
3t. Carson Palmer |
Arizona |
3 |
Not that Winston is the only rookie on that list. In fact, is just the 14th quarterback to direct as many as three game-winning drives in his rookie season. Once again, we are using game-winning drive date compiled by Pro Football Reference.
Most Game-Winning Drives, Rookie, NFL History
Player |
Team |
Year |
GWDs |
|
IND |
2012 |
7 |
|
PIT |
2004 |
6 |
3t. Geno Smith |
NYJ |
2013 |
5 |
3t. Russell Wilson |
SEA |
2012 |
5 |
3t. Vince Young |
TEN |
2006 |
5 |
6t. Andy Dalton |
CIN |
2011 |
4 |
6t. Matt Ryan |
ATL |
2008 |
4 |
8t. Jameis Winston* |
TB |
2015 |
3 |
8t. Teddy Bridgewater |
MIN |
2014 |
3 |
8t. Bruce Gradkowski |
TB |
2006 |
3 |
8t. Carson Palmer |
CIN |
2004 |
3 |
8t. Jay Schroeder |
WAS |
1985 |
3 |
8t. Virgil Carter |
CHI |
1968 |
3 |
** Through 12 games
Winston may not be the only rookie to lead as many as three game-winning drives, but he's the youngest quarterback ever to do so. The list below is *not exclusive to rookies.*
*
Player |
Team |
Year |
Age^ |
GWDs |
Jameis Winston* |
TB |
2015 |
**21 |
3 |
Teddy Bridgewater |
MIN |
2014 |
21** |
3 |
Geno Smith |
NYJ |
2013 |
22 |
5 |
Andrew Luck |
IND |
2012 |
22 |
7 |
Josh Freeman |
TB |
2010 |
22 |
5 |
Ben Roethlisberger |
PIT |
2004 |
22 |
6 |
Kerry Collins |
CAR |
1995 |
22 |
3 |
Drew Bledsoe |
NE |
1994 |
22 |
3 |
Brett Favre |
GB |
1992 |
22 |
3 |
Bernie Kosar |
CLE |
1986 |
22 |
7 |
Dan Marino |
MIA |
1984 |
22 |
3 |
Mike Pagel |
BAL |
1983 |
22 |
4 |
Virgil Carter |
CHI |
1968 |
22 |
3 |
^ Age on season's opening day. * Through 12 games. * Winston was 21 years, eight months and seven days old; Bridgewater was 21 years, nine months and 28 days old; the remaining quarterbacks were all 22 and are ordered chronologically, not by specific year-month-day age.
*
Thanks to research conducted by Roy Cummings of the Tampa Tribune and TBO.com, we know that Winston has a chance to post the best rookie-season passer rating among all quarterbacks drafted first-overall since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger. Cummings revealed that note on Sunday, before the Buccaneers' win over Atlanta, but Winston did nothing to hurt his cause. His 18-of-27 performance with 227 yards, one touchdown and one interception on Sunday produced a single-game passer rating of 89.6 which bumped up his season mark just a bit, from 85.3 to 85.7. Carolina's Cam Newton finished his rookie campaign with a rating of 84.5.*
If Winston can continue to improve his rating, he could become just the sixth Buccaneer, and the first Tampa Bay rookie, to finish a season north of 90.0. Below are the top 10 single-season passer ratings in Buccaneer annals. If Winston starts the final four games of the season, he will have the second-highest single-season rating in team history among quarterbacks who started every game.
Best Passer Rating, Single Season, Buccaneers
*
Player |
Year |
GP |
Rating |
|
2004 |
11 |
97.5 |
|
2010 |
16 |
95.9 |
|
2007 |
13 |
94.6 |
|
2002 |
13 |
92.9 |
|
2008 |
12 |
90.2 |
6. Jameis Winston* |
2015 |
12 |
85.6 |
|
1987 |
12 |
85.3 |
|
2013 |
13 |
83.9 |
|
1997 |
16 |
82.8 |
|
1994 |
15 |
82.5 |
** Through 12 games
*With another 227 passing yards on Sunday against Atlanta, Winston improved his season total to 2,877, leaving him just 123 yards shy of the first 3,000-yard campaign by a rookie in team annals. In fact, at his current pace, Winston would finish with the second-most passing yards in a single season in team history, rookie or not. He is on pace for 3,836 yards, not enough to catch Josh Freeman's 2012 team record of 4,065 but enough to inch past the 3,811 Brad Johnson put up in 2003. With 17 touchdown passes through 12 outings, Winston remains on pace for 23 by season's end. That would rank fourth in team annals, on a list topped by Freeman's 27 in 2012, Johnson's 26 in 2003 and Freeman's 25 in 2010.