Jameis Winston's 'bossy' leadership style surprising to new coaching staff

TAMPA, Fla. - Jameis Winston is taking charge in a way that caught the Buccaneers' new coaching staff a little off guard, but they like it.

"[He is a] good leader," said Bucs Assistant Head Coach Harold Goodwin. "Very bossy leader. We had a deal last week where he basically let everyone in the huddle know, ‘I’m in charge.’ He came to me after practice and apologized and I was like, 'Bro, I thoroughly enjoyed watching that.’ He told the guys, ‘This is my huddle, everybody shut the hell up. Listen to what I say.’ I was like, 'OK, I like that. We’re going to be alright with him. You guys don’t worry about him.'”

His blindside protection, Donovan Smith says this is nothing new. Outsiders just don't get to see it.

"Bossy leader, if that's the word you want to go with. That's the way to go," Smith told FOX 13's Kevin O'Donnell. "He's a great leader. I'd just like to say he's taking control of the huddle. He's the enforcer. When you come in there, center sets the huddle, the enforcer comes in and if someone's not whatever. It's like, 'Pay attention.'"

Organized Team Activities (OTA) are not all about installing their ways. It's also about learning the players' ways.

"The first thing I told Jameis is, 'I just need honesty. I don’t care what the answer is, just give me honesty,'" said Bucs Offensive Coordinator Byron Leftwich. "Because once I know how he’s winding and how he thinks I can begin to call plays for him... It helps me learn him and the more I can learn Jameis the better I can call plays for him."

The first thing the new staff has seen from Jameis is that he's always at One Buc Place. That's not always a productive thing.

"Sometimes I’ve got to tell them, ‘You’ve got to get out of here.’ That’s how much he’s putting in and I appreciate that as a coach, but there is a balance to it,” said Leftwich.

New Bucs Quarterback Coach Clyde Christensen has seen the downside of working too much.

"There’s been times we worked with a couple of workaholic quarterbacks," said Christensen. "There’s just a point where you have to get away from this thing. It’s a pressure-packed position that fatigues you and, come week 20 of the season, or week 21 for the playoffs, one of the keys is being fresh, being fresh mentally and physically. I think that will be an issue with him.”