Jameis Winston’s 2020 NFL MVP Odds Improving Rapidly – Could Former Buc Be Replacing Brady in New England?
- Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston could be departing the Sunshine State
- Winston’s 2020 MVP odds have drastically dropped – is he worth wagering on?
- See the updated odds for the 2020 NFL MVP below
With each passing day, it appears more and more likely that quarterback Jameis Winston and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are headed towards a divorce. While the 2015 first-overall pick has shown flashes of brilliance in his five seasons, he’s also been maddeningly inconsistent, leading to rumors that head coach Bruce Arians is very interested in replacing him with Tom Brady.
Interestingly, Winston saw his 2020 NFL MVP odds slashed from +6600 to +2500 since word broke that he is likely on the way out the door with him being linked to the New England opening at QB. Is it worth plunking down cash on him or are you playing with fool’s gold expecting him to suddenly stop turning the ball over at an alarming rate?
2020 NFL MVP Odds
| Player | Odds |
|---|---|
| Patrick Mahomes | +400 |
| Lamar Jackson | +500 |
| Russell Wilson | +500 |
| Kyler Murray | +1500 |
| Deshaun Watson | +1500 |
| Drew Brees | +1600 |
| Aaron Rodgers | +1800 |
| Dak Prescott | +1800 |
| Carson Wentz | +1800 |
| Tom Brady | +2500 |
| Jameis Winston | +2500 |
| Christian McCaffrey | +2500 |
| Jimmy Garoppolo | +2500 |
| Matt Ryan | +2800 |
| Ezekiel Elliott | +2800 |
Odds taken March 17th.
Why Winston’s MVP Odds Have Dropped Significantly
It’s a major surprise that Jameis Winston’s odds to win 2020 MVP would drop so strongly from +6600 to +2500, despite him leading the league with a career-high 5,109 passing yards. While he had his issues protecting the football in Tampa Bay, leading to the dubious honor of the 30-30 club (TD’s and INT’s), he had a QB whisperer Head Coach in Bruce Arians plus a stable of talented wide receivers to work with. Chris Godwin was third in the league with 1,333 yards with Mike Evans being 13th, amassing 1,157.
"$100 million Jameis Winston. I see $100 million throws." 👀
📺: @89JonesNTAF | @NFLTotalAccess pic.twitter.com/aQzPz0KAKC
— NFL Network (@nflnetwork) March 12, 2020
He did get lasik eye surgery in the off-season, leading to the predictable jokes, but the bottom line is he played in an offense that allowed him to air the ball out, racking up yards and him throwing a career-best 33 touchdowns this season. Yet Tampa Bay still seemingly wants to wash their hands of him.
Free Agent QB Jameis Winston led the NFL with 30 interceptions.
He had 21 more interceptions dropped: pic.twitter.com/LEAhrBHljj
— QB Data Mine (@QBDataMine) March 16, 2020
In his five seasons, Winston has only thrown for more than 22 touchdowns just twice, with 11 interceptions his low watermark for any campaign. Do these numbers inspire much confidence that he could finally have a career eureka moment? Hardly, but his odds keep dropping because he’s generating the most wagers.
What if I told you…
Jameis Winston currently has the most amount of bets to win next year's MVP award. pic.twitter.com/CaElfY55Av
— DraftKings Sportsbook (@DKSportsbook) March 9, 2020
Jameis Winston’s Career Statistics
| Year | Yards | Completion Percentage | TD/INT | Sacks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 4,042 | 58.3% | 22/15 | 27 |
| 2016 | 4,090 | 60.8% | 28/18 | 35 |
| 2017 (13 starts) | 3,504 | 63.8% | 19/11 | 33 |
| 2018 (9 starts) | 2,992 | 64.6% | 19/14 | 27 |
| 2019 | 5,109 | 60.7% | 33/30 | 47 |
Would New England Really Boost His MVP Chances?
Why would his odds improve so starkly by switching teams? Should he head to New England, he’d be working with the legend Bill Belichick, but as of now, their assortment of wide receivers and tight ends don’t inspire much confidence whatsoever. Outside of Julian Edelman, no wide receiver on their roster had more than 400 yards on the season, with their leading tight end (Matt LaCosse) picking up a paltry 131 yards. Without more help for Winston, you’d expect more mistakes, which has been his career downfall.
Bill Belichick after Jameis Winston throws his 6th interception of the first quarter: pic.twitter.com/W6ie0ev2Vn
— Cameron DaSilva (@camdasilva) March 17, 2020
Chargers an Intriguing Destination
There hasn’t been much talk of Winston plying his trade for the Chargers, but that could be the team that could unlock that potential, with some excellent skill position players around him in Keenan Allen, Mike Williams, Hunter Henry and Austin Ekeler. Whether the Chargers want to potentially go through another quarterback with a penchant for throwing passes to the other team (Philip Rivers had 20 picks last year), is another story. His talent is undeniable, but there’s just way too much inconsistency and controversy that surrounds him to trust him to ascend to the top of the sport.
Pick: Jameis Winston does not win 2020 NFL MVP
Michael "Hound Dog" Harrison is well known in the sports industry as the resident statistician for the SC with Jay Onrait Show. He has worked at TSN for over 16 years, where he's been featured on Sportscentre, That's Hockey, That's Hockey 2Nite, The Masters preview shows, and several more.
