FILLING THE VOID
Fitzpatrick’s journey includes starter’s role while Winston serves suspension
New Orleans, Carolina and Atlanta all have quarterbacks who have gotten them to Super Bowls.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers just want theirs to get them through three games.
That’s the assignment for Ryan Fitzpatrick, the fill-in starter while Jameis Winston serves a three-game suspension to begin the season for violating the NFL’s personal-conduct policy.
It’s a familiar role for the journeyman Fitzpatrick, 35, who is on his seventh NFL team and has started multiple games in each of the last 10 seasons, including three for the Buccaneers last season.
“Just look at his experience, not only as a player but he’s been in a lot of rooms and a lot of systems,” Tampa Bay coach Dirk Koetter told reporters. “He’s great for [Winston], heck he’s great for me. I enjoy talking to Ryan. He’s got really good input on situational football like we did today. He’s a lot of fun to have in there.”
Had Winston not been suspended, the NFC South would be the only division returning all four starting quarterbacks.
In Carolina, Norv Turner has replaced Mike Shula as offensive coordinator, and the Panthers are hoping to take a big step forward with a unit that finished 19th in total offense last season. Quarterback Cam Newton has a new pair of passcatching targets in veteran Torrey Smith and rookie D.J. Moore.
Newton told reporters it’s time for the Panthers to “take back the division” but said it doesn’t have to be a complete offensive rebuild.
“I think the onus is on [Turner] more so than us,” he said, “to take what we have done good and expand on it, rather than just ripping the sheets of paper up and having a this-is-my-way-or-the-highway mentality.”
In Atlanta, Matt Ryan cooled a bit last season after his MVP campaign of 2016. The Falcons were eighth in total offense and 15th in scoring. The Falcons gave him a contract extension that pays him $30 million per season and are banking on his typically top-notch play.
Ryan said he’s anticipating an offensive uptick in the second year of Steve Sarkisian’s system.
“Sark is a lot more comfortable with the personnel, knowing what guys to use in certain situations and I think that just comes with experience,” he said. “He did a great job with us last year and he’ll continue to do a great job with us this year.”
The Falcons would love for Ryan, 33, to have the career longevity of 39-year-old New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees.
Brees had an NFL-record completion rate of 72.0% last season and a career-best 8.1 yards per attempt in leading the Saints to the division title. It helped that the team had a devastating 1-2 punch at running back with Mark Ingram sharing carries with rookie Alvin Kamara. Both are outstanding backs. Ingram will miss the first four games of the season, serving a suspension for performance-enhancing substances.
The Saints, who won eight consecutive games at one point last season, return 21 starters from that team.
“I’m still having fun, still having a lot of fun,” said Brees, in his 18th NFL season. “Every year is a new year, it’s a new challenge, it’s a new team. A lot of the same challenges and same goals and aspirations that you start every training camp with, but there’s always new dynamics and new circumstances and new guys that you’re trying to get used to.
“And [there’s] just that same level of excitement, though, and anticipation for what we can be. This is where we build it, this is where we establish our identity.”