Buccaneers Take Safety Antoine Winfield Jr. With No. 45 Pick

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers drafted safety Antoine Winfield Jr. from Minnesota with the No. 45 pick in the NFL draft.

The younger Winfield is the son of 14-year NFL veteran Antoine Winfield Sr., who spent nine years with the Minnesota Vikings and five with the Buffalo Bills. The older Winfield was a first-round pick out of Ohio State in 1999. He won the Jim Thorpe Award as the nation's best defensive back during his senior year.

Winfield Sr. also has a tie to his son's new teammate. He intercepted Tom Brady back in 2001, Brady's first season as New England's starting quarterback. The Patriots won that game, 21-11, in what was Brady's seventh career start.

Winfield Jr. was a unanimous first-team All-American in 2019 and won the Big Ten Defensive Back of the Year Award. He made 83 tackles with seven interceptions and three sacks, helping lead Minnesota to its first 11-win season in over a century.

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