The Buccaneers have too many players capable of doing damage to be wasting them in low-impact roles, and Antoine Winfield Jr. is the clearest example.
Winfield is one of the NFL’s highest-paid defensive backs for a reason. He made the Pro Bowl twice, was an All-Pro in 2023 and landed a four-year, $84.1 million deal that was the richest contract for a defensive back at the time. But over the past three seasons, the Bucs have often used him like a deep safety whose job is to stay out of trouble rather than a playmaker who can wreck an offense near the line of scrimmage.
Todd Bowles even put a blunt label on it last year, calling Winfield a “babysitter.” That description fit too well.
Winfield’s best season showed exactly what he can be: in 2023, he posted three interceptions, 12 passes defensed, six forced fumbles, four fumble recoveries and six sacks. That kind of production belongs in the same conversation as Ronde Barber, who is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Since then, in 29 games, Winfield has just two interceptions, three sacks, one forced fumble and two fumble recoveries.
Injuries have played a part in that drop-off, but the bigger issue is how the Bucs have deployed him. He belongs closer to the line, where he can affect the run, rush the passer and make plays on the ball. Bowles acknowledged as much.
“We’ve got to call his number more,” Bowles said. “We haven’t called his number as much based on certain things we were doing on defense. I’ve got to call his number a little bit more.”
The shift in the secondary may have started when Jordan Whitehead was involved in a fairly serious car accident and suffered a fractured neck a couple of years ago, which led the Bucs to decline his contract option.
There are other safeties on the roster, including Tykee Smith, but Smith can get lost in coverage and has trouble covering so much ground in the middle of the field. Smith, Keionte Scott and Ifeatu Melifonwu may be better fits at nickel corner.
Winfield is not the only player who needs a bigger role.
The Bucs are paying running back $7 million per year, and that kind of money does not make sense if the plan is to park him on the bench or use him only on kick returns. Bucky Irving has gotten off to good starts in games, but that does not explain why Gainwell has managed only 21 yards on 10 carries this season.
“The flow of the game sometimes has dictated that,” offensive coordinator Zac Robinson said. ”There have been some times when Bucky has been rolling, so we wanted to kind of keep Bucky going with some of the limited possessions that we’ve gotten.
So, we definitely want to get Kenny involved. He knows he’s got his responsibility as well to earn those opportunities and show us when he is in there that he deserves the right to play more.
So, yeah, we’ve got to get him rolling. We know that."
Tucker is in an even stranger spot. He entered Week 4 still without a rushing attempt, despite being behind Irving and Gainwell on the depth chart. He has shown he can help when given the chance, and right now he has been reduced mostly to short-yardage and goal-line work.
“One hundred percent. (We’ve) got to get ‘Tuck’ going,” Robinson said. “He is special with the ball in his hands.”
The Bucs finally got Hurst involved last Sunday, and he made it count with a 40-yard touchdown catch. After that, though, he disappeared again, finishing with just three more targets and no additional catches against the Vikings. The encouraging part is that Jalon Daniels spent the preseason throwing to Hurst, which could help their connection moving forward.
“It was great to see his first touchdown on that - it was a big play,” Robinson said. “... I’ve got to find ways, really, for all these guys.”
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