Jameis Winston's three-game suspension to start the upcoming season creates a unique challenge for Bucs coach Dirk Koetter, trying to prepare backup Ryan Fitzpatrick while also getting Winston ready for when he'll step back in as starter.
"There's no formula written down in the coach's handbook for that," Koetter said Wednesday. "We're trying to get Jameis reps with all three groups. Obviously we've got to give Fitz work. One of the advantages of having a 27-year veteran quarterback is he doesn't need quite as many reps, so we can still get Jameis some work with the first group."
Winston has worked primarily with the second and third units in the first week of training camp, but's nearly two months before he'll make his season debut, no earlier than Sept. 30 when the Bucs play at Chicago.
"If you just counted them up every day, Jameis is still getting the most reps every day, barely, in camp," Koetter said. "Also we can't forget about Ryan Griffin. He needs his reps. He's one play away from being in there."
Another decision will be how Koetter splits the playing time in preseason. We wrote in June about the 2016 Patriots, who were in similar circumstances with Tom Brady facing a four-game suspension to start the series. It could mean that Winston ends up playing quite a bit in the preseason finale, at home on Aug. 30 against the Jaguars, in a game where key players are normally held out as a safety precaution.
.jpg?w=600)
