Winston (suspension) isn't guaranteed the starting job upon his Week 4 return in the opinion of general manager Jason Licht, Jenna Laine of ESPN.com reports. "[If] Ryan Fitzpatrick, Ryan Griffin, whoever it is, is playing lights out, I don't think it's fair right now just to say, 'Yes, automatically, [Jameis] is going to be the guy,'" Licht said. "Now, he may be. Dirk and I -- Dirk in particular -- he's got some time to think about that."
Licht made his comments during the local broadcast of last Thursday's preseason finale against the Jaguars, certainly raising a few eyebrows. Ryan Fitzpatrick faces an uphill battle to give the uncertainty Licht alludes to in his comments further credence, however, considering the veteran quarterback is slated to face three stingy defenses in the Saints, Eagles and Steelers over the guaranteed portion of his starting tenure. Furthermore, Winston is coming off the best preseason of his career, completing 73.0 percent of his 41 attempts for 388 yards while generating a 3:0 TD:INT and 126.9 passer rating across three exhibitions. Coach Dirk Koetter certainly took note, giving Winston an "A" grade for his efforts this summer and noting that his fourth-year quarterback "did a really good job of working on things he needed to work on". Licht's comments aside, it would presumably take a near-elite effort from Fitzpatrick in three especially tough matchups to have a chance at extending his stint under center beyond those contests.