The Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ playoff hopes died on Thursday night, but their quarterback’s bid for Rookie of the Year continued after a career-high passing effort.
Former Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston is the Professio”Nole” Athlete of the Week for the week of Dec. 14-20 after passing for 363 yards and a pair of scores.
In Thursday’s 31-23 loss, Winston was 29-for-50 passing. Most of Winston’s numbers came with Tampa Bay trailing and he was intercepted once, but his career passing-high beat his previous best by 66 yards.
For the year, Winston ranks 13th in the NFL in passing yards and yards-per-attempt. With Winston under center, Tampa Bay has already tripled its win total from last year. Among quarterbacks, only MVP candidate Cam Newton has more rushing touchdowns than Winston on the season.
Notables
Anquan Boldin, WR San Francisco 49ers (NFL)
San Francisco 49ers’ wide receiver Anquan Boldin finished with eight catches for 74 yards and a touchdown in Sunday’s 24-14 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.
Devonta Freeman, RB Atlanta Falcons (NFL)
Atlanta Falcons’ running back Devonta Freeman accounted for 101 yards of offense and a touchdown in Sunday’s 23-17 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars. Freeman carried the ball 25 times for 56 yards and a score. He also caught seven passes for 45 yards in the win.
Lawrence Timmons, LB Pittsburgh Steelers (NFL)
Pittsburgh Steelers’ linebacker Lawrence Timmons recorded six tackles and a sack in Sunday’s 34-27 victory over the Denver Broncos.
