2 OF A KIND

J Winston, Mariota following path to ultimate success

Winston does not crack jokes in his huddle. He is all business.

“Sometimes he gets so excited in the huddle we can’t understand what he’s saying,” Brate said. “He does a great job both of firing us up for our drive, but also keeping us levelheaded. We’re pretty young on offense, and so sometimes if things aren’t going our way, guys get frustrated. But Jameis kind of gets it back on the right page, make sure we’re all communicating well with each other and that we’re all on the same page.”

Mariota’s toughness inspires Walker.

“I’ll have to say he’s a gladiator. ... If he gets hurt, he still wants to go in the game and control the offense,” Walker said. “Bruised, battered, beaten, he’s gonna go out there and gives it all he’s got.”

Walker recalls a game against the Browns last year when Mariota sustained ligament damage in his knee.

“He came to the sideline, clearly he was hurt,” Walker said, “and he told the coaches, ‘I’m going back in the game. Tape it up, I’m going back in the game,’ and he finished that game in Cleveland, and then that’s when I knew we had us a true quarterback.”

Walker recalled a hesitant Mariota as a rookie.

“But this year, we voted on him as being a captain because we see that leadership and how he takes control of the offense this year,” Walker said.

The Bucs can’t help but notice Winston’s leap in authority.

“I think the biggest thing that he’s done is he’s grown as the leader of our offense of our team this year,” Brate said. “He was the leader of the offense because he was the quarterback, but he didn’t necessarily step up vocally all the time.

“If we’re not doing well on offense, Jameis will pull a guy aside if he’s struggling, he’ll tell him what’s expected of him, that we all are relying on that person. He’ll say something in the huddle before we go out there every drive. Just as far as leadership goes, the strides he’s made in the past year have been huge.”

Walker played with the young Colin Kaepernick.

“They can both run, that’s what they both do well is run,” Walker said. “But I will have to say Marcus understanding the scheme and stuff, he’s probably a notch better than Kaepernick in that aspect.” Off the field? “If you met Marcus and did not know who he was, you probably wouldn’t think he played in the NFL,” Walker said. “He’s quiet, he doesn’t say much, his body type, he don’t really look like he’s as physical and as strong as he is. If Marcus wasn’t on my team and I seen him on the street, I would probably think he played baseball or something.”

Winston’s personality is a hit with his teammates.

“He can be pretty goofy,” Brate said. “A real funny dude. He’s got nickname for everyone on the team. I think it’s his way of remembering everyone’s names, but he’ll throw out some bizarre nicknames for people, man.

The sky’s the limit for Mariota.

“He’s got a chance to be a Pro Bowler, probably be known as one of the great quarterbacks to play this game,” Walker said.

The sky’s the limit for Winston.

“I think Jameis can for sure become an elite quarterback,” Brate said. “His knowledge for the game is off the charts. We think the sky’s the limit for us, we just gotta work on being more consistent, and that’s something that Jameis understands, and he’s trying to instill that in himself and in all of us.”

AMEIS WINSTON and Marcus Mariota will endure the inevitable growing pains, because virtually all of them do — even John Elway, even Peyton Manning.

But make no mistake: There are n u me r - ous NFL franchises — and they know who they are — who would kill for a young franchise quarterback like Winston or Mariota, and are stuck in quicksand because they don’t have one.

Neither Winston nor Mariota, the first- and second-overall picks in the 2015 draft, has taken the league by storm, but they have provided enough early evidence to make you believe in the future it will be raining touchdown passes in Tampa Bay and all across Tennessee.

Winston showed up as a precocious leader with a big personality from Day 1, while the low- key Mariota has matured into a more vocal leader.

Winston ( 31 career touchdowns, 23 interceptions) has calmed concerns about his charaa ct e r fo l l owi ng two rape accusations tthat wound up ccosting Florida SState University $950,000.

Mariota ( 29 career TDs, 16 INTs) has quieted naysayers who were certain he couldn’t make the transition from a spread offense at Oregon to the NFL.

Serby Says spoke to the tight ends of both quarterbacks.

Delanie Walker is Mariota’s best aerial weapon.

“I don’t know if you saw the Miami game, but he threw a pass down the middle to me, and he was leaning on his back foot when he threw it,” Walker said. “He has one of the strongest arms I’ve seen. The guy can throw it as far as he wants to throw it, as hard as he wants to throw it, as hard as he possibly can throw it.

You can see when he gets out of the pocket, he’s one hard guy to tackle, very fast, can get around the edge, makes the right decisions about putting us in situations that we can execute the play, and that’s changing it to a run, or changing it to the pass. He knows the game. He studies probably as hard as anyone on this team.”

Cameron Brate, emerging in his third season out of Harvard, was asked to describe Winston’s physical tools.

“The first day Jameis came in, we weren’t really used to seeing the arm strength from the quarterback,” Brate said. “The ball really comes out of his hand with some velocity. So it took a little while to get used to that. He’s got the arm strength to make all the throws. He’s done a great job this past year I think really working on his accuracy and understanding of ball placement. The passes usually, right when you come out of your break, they’re in the right spot.

“He’s probably, I would say, unorthodox type of runner. But he gets the job done. He makes plays for us when the pocket collapses. The thing about him is he’s just the biggest competitor I know. He wants to win at all costs.”

Brate referenced trailing the Cardinals 33-7 after three quarters in Week 2.

“We’re coming out for a drive in the fourth quarter, and Jameis says, ‘The comeback starts now,’” Brate said. “He wasn’t just saying that, he really meant it. We ended up losing 40-7, but that’s what you want in your leader. He wants to win at all costs.”

Walker referenced one moment last week when Mariota barked at players to get in the huddle.

“He’s quiet, until he’s gotta be loud,” Walker said. “He’s usually casual, until he needs to take command.”