Bucs S Antoine Winfield Jr. and ILB Devin White – Photo by: USA Today “Yeah, I just come up and show up and just put my work in every single day,” Winfield said. “The guys know me – when I’m in the office working – everybody needs to work. I try to bring that type of energy to the team, especially the guys on the back end. Just keep showing up.” If the field is his office, he has been putting in the work. You know, handling paperwork, answering phone calls, updating company records. Based on his play this season, it is only a matter of time before he will be putting pen to paper, taking phone calls to accept some accolades, and placing the finishing touches on a record-setting year that has put him in his own elite company. But is Antoine Winfield Jr. being talked about enough? He has not only done a little bit of everything, he is doing things as a defensive back that have not been done since the beginning of the 21st century. Winfield has had a one-of-a-kind season, and he deserves more national love as a one-of-a-kind player for the Bucs. Does Antoine Winfield Jr. Remind Todd Bowles Of Anyone? “Not In My Lifetime” Bucs head coach Todd Bowles has played alongside and coached some of the best defensive backs in recent memory. Back in the 1980s, he paired will Hall of Fame cornerback Darrell Green for the then-Washington Redskins. As a coach, it is quite a lengthy list of All-Pro defensive backs he has seen up close and worked with. LeRoy Butler, Roy Williams, Nnamdi Asomugha, Patrick Peterson, Antonio Cromartie, Tyrann Mathieu, Darrelle Revis, and Jamal Adams. 
Bucs S Antoine Winfield Jr. – Photo by: USA Today But none of them remind Bowles of Antoine Winfield Jr., nor does really anyone in NFL history. “Not in my lifetime,” Bowles said when posed that question. “I think Charles Woodson might have had some numbers like that. I couldn’t tell you what the numbers were, but I know he did a lot of things when he played.” Woodson, the Hall of Fame cornerback who played safety at the end of his career, was a stat-sheet stuffer, but even he did not match the versatility that Winfield has this season. Through 15 games, Antoine Winfield Jr. has 110 total tackles, five sacks, five forced fumbles, four fumble recoveries, and three interceptions. As Fox Sports’ Greg Auman pointed out, this kind of output has happened only once in the last 25 years. Todd Bowles added that his star defensive back has an aptitude for this kind of production. “He’s instinctual, he has talent, he studies film profusely, he practices like that, he asks a lot of questions,” Bowles said. “We’re able to move him around to some places, but his football IQ allows him to execute a lot of the things he’s doing.” Being the son of an NFL defensive back helps, but it seems like Winfield was born to follow his dad’s footsteps and make his own footprint. Bowles said that his intangibles are something that cannot be taught. “Certain guys have a knack for it – it’s something you can’t teach. You can teach them to get the ball out and try to go for the ball, but he has a knack for it every time and he’s making it happen.” Antoine Winfield Jr. Is Still Criminally Underrated So with his play contextualized, it would seem to be a slam-dunk that he is the best safety in the NFL, right? Right? Well, not so fast. As has been the case of other Buccaneers’ defensive players, most notably Lavonte David, they have not been properly given their flowers when they are more than deserved. That’s why when Pro Football Focus (PFF) put out this question recently, it makes one scratch their head. Is Kyle Hamilton already the best safety in the NFL? pic.twitter.com/NhlUfKf9Zr — PFF (@PFF) December 27, 2023 Quite simply, this should not be debated anymore. The best two safeties in the NFL play in the NFC South, and while Jessie Bates III is great, the best one resides in Tampa Bay. The talent on the field speaks for itself. Antoine Winfield Jr. has been a jack of all trades this season:5 sacks + 5 TFLs
3 INTs + 12 passes defended
5 forced fumbles + 5 fumble recoveries
: #NOvsTB — Sunday 1pm ET on FOX
: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/xuv1PmUkue — NFL (@NFL) December 30, 2023 
Bucs FS Antoine Winfield Jr. – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR Without Antoine Winfield Jr., it’s hard to see the Bucs being in the position that they are currently in. What he has done as a player and first-time team captain should not be understated. That’s why when you are thinking of who the NFL Defensive Player of The Year should be, Winfield should be in the conversation next to T.J. Watt and Myles Garrett. Bucs rookie outside linebacker YaYa Diaby is starting to enter national conversations himself, but when asked about Antoine Winfield Jr., Diaby gushed about what Winfield means to the team. “Man, dude is special man,” Diaby said. “I’m telling you man, there’s certain things that he just does. Little things like just walking outside, no shoes on. You look at him like, ‘Dude, what are you doing?’ It’s just his way of feeling everything. It’s his routine, and he just does incredible things and he helps this team out a lot. That’s the guy you want on your team and I just hope that he stays on this team moving forward.” The post Bucs S Antoine Winfield Jr. Deserves More National Love appeared first on Pewter Report. Source: https://www.pewterreport.com/bucs-antoi ... onal-love/
