Patrick Peterson, Cardinals capitalize on Jameis Winston mistakes

Second-year quarterback Jameis Winston has a swagger about him, and early on against the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday, the Tampa Bay leader was playing fearlessly, targeting his opponent’s best players.

That’s admirable, but it came with its detriments to the tune of five turnovers in a 40-7 loss to the Cardinals.

At midfield, Winston took a first-quarter deep shot, attempting to hit Buccaneers receiver Mike Evans. Cardinals cornerback Patrick Peterson was not only in coverage but outrunning Evans on the route to make the interception in the end zone before he returned it to the 25-yard line.

Love the decision to take a shot at this location of the field. Don’t love targeting Patrick Peterson. Cards INT. pic.twitter.com/pY73FugwPW

— Trevor Sikkema (@TrevorSikkema) September 18, 2016

Winston found trouble again two possessions later when Arizona’s other cornerback, Marcus Cooper, picked off the Bucs quarterback.

The Cardinals would score a field goal off the turnover to give them a 10-0 lead, but perhaps the more important key point is that Cooper was earning snaps ahead of rookie starter Brandon Williams. Cooper was acquired on Sept. 2 when Arizona traded a conditional seventh-round  2018 draft pick to Kansas City.

Winston’s turnover problem continued when he fumbled the ball while dropping back to make a pass with three minutes to play in the first half. Arizona would respond with a touchdown drive to give it a 17-0 lead before tacking on another score off a 51-yard Jaron Brown reception for a 24-0 score heading into halftime.

In the second half, Cooper struck again, taking his second pick of the afternoon for a 60-yard touchdown.

Winston turned the ball over a fifth and final time on the final play of the game, a last-chance deep-ball that was easily intercepted by Arizona safety D.J. Swearinger.

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