Cleveland Browns QB Jameis Winston is coming off a game that left him praying for salvation from his own mistakes. A week prior to that, he led the Browns to a victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers. Now he gets to play the Steelers again, and he knows he can’t repeat the same mistakes.
After losing to the Denver Broncos, having thrown two pick-sixes, Winston said after the game that he was “praying for the Lord to deliver me from pick-sixes”. That comment went viral for both favorable and unfavorable reasons, some simply finding it funny.
On Thursday, Winston addressed his latest viral moment, and he took no joy out of it. “No. I mean, it’s not fun. I take it very personally”, he said, via the Browns’ website. “But I do believe in prayer, and I know prayer works, but I still focus on the decisions. I can work technique stuff, I can work fundamentals, and I’m going to continue to work fundamentals and understanding that when those moments come up, focusing on the fundamentals and technique more than the moment”.
The criticism Jameis Winston received from his comments centered on the fact that they seemed to deflect responsibility. He was not throwing pick-sixes because of divine intervention, or lack thereof. The other team was collecting his passes and taking them for a ride because of his decisions. From that angle, it’s good that he addressed the context in which he meant his original remark.
Asked how he plans to work on cutting down interceptions, Winston did double down, in part. “Yeah, like literally prayer and I’m snapping clear”, he began. “You can’t go into a game thinking about turnovers. Only thing you can do is go into the game focusing on protecting the football”.
To his credit, Jameis Winston took full responsibility for both of his pick-sixes. He knocked himself for the throw on one and for the decision on the other. And if you play football for long enough, you’re bound to watch one of your balls going the other way. Just this past Sunday, Russell Wilson saw his fourth pass of the game go the other way for six.
The Steelers, of course, would love to deny Winston his prayers this Sunday. After all, they only have one defensive touchdown all season, also coming this past week. They could certainly stand to have another one, and Winston is one of the best in the league at throwing pick-sixes.
At the end of the day, Jameis Winston seems to be a genuine and good-hearted person. I’m sure he was sincere in his original comments and is not pleased to see how so many took them. But that’s the price of putting your words out there in public—even I know that. Say something stupid and somebody on the Internet will be sure to let you know.
