Buccaneers Hope to Have S Antoine Winfield Jr. Healthier For Next Season

Antoine Winfield Jr. missed a lot of time for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this season, and head coach Todd Bowles would like to see him back and healthy.
Jan 12, 2025; Tampa, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers safety Antoine Winfield Jr. (31) warms up before a NFC wild card playoff against the Washington Commanders at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
Jan 12, 2025; Tampa, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers safety Antoine Winfield Jr. (31) warms up before a NFC wild card playoff against the Washington Commanders at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
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Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive back Antoine Winfield Jr. has the potential to be one of the best players in the NFL.

At 26 years old, Winfield is approaching his prime, but injuries got the better of him this past season. Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles wishes that he was able to see more of Winfield Jr. this season.

READ MORE: Buccaneers Team Captain Supports Head Coach Todd Bowles After Playoff Loss

"Confidence is great. Just got to get him on the field. We have to get him on the field. He was hurt at the beginning of the season and then he got hurt toward the end of the season," Bowles said. "We hadn't had him out there much. Just having a full offseason, having him healthy going into the season, I think he'll play the way he played a year ago."

Winfield played in just nine out of 17 regular season games, but he was able to return for the team's playoff game against the Washington Commanders. He had a down year one year after being named a First Team All-Pro, recording just 34 solo tackles and no forced fumbles or interceptions.

But now that the season is over, Winfield can recover properly in hopes of bouncing back in 2025.


READ MORE: Every Buccaneers Free Agent Heading into 2025

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Jeremy Brener
JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.