Bucs GM Jason Licht Comments on Jameis Winston's Rookie Year

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers were taking a huge risk drafting Jameis Winston with the No. 1 pick in the 2015 NFL draft.

Character issues were believed to be a problem, and even his own lawyer thought he wasn't ready for the NFL spotlight. But Tampa Bay general manger Jason Licht, who even thought he would throw 30 interceptions his rookie year, wouldn't want anyone else throwing passes in Tampa Bay.

"We knew we were going to struggle at times this year, but as long as that guy's future was bright, there was a lot of hope for us," Licht told NFL.com's Jeff Darlington on Tuesday. "And he's come along a lot quicker than I expected, to be honest with you. I wouldn't trade him for another quarterback in the league."

If not for Winston, the Bucs would not have exceeded expectations as much as they have this year. The former Heisman Trophy winner has thrown for 3,059 yards and 18 touchdowns, but he has completed only 58 percent of his passes.  

But if that's the only knock on Winston's game on a Tampa Bay team that's 6-7, then that's totally fine. In such a short time, Winston has turned Tampa Bay from a joke that was the worst team in the league last year to a team on the verge of playoff contention by next year.

He's quickly changed everyone's tune and thoughts on him as a player. NFL Network analyst Steve Mariucci even called Winston the "smartest guy I've interviewed at the combine in 10 years at NFL Network." There are still some kinks to iron out, but Winston has the tools to be great given a couple of years.