Winston will now have to wait five days before he is allowed to hire a new agentGETTY IMAGES
Buccaneers QB Jameis Winston has "parted ways" with his agents, The Legacy Agency's Greg Genske and Kenny Felder, a pair of baseball agents who had limited football experience and had represented Winston "throughout his NFL career," according to Mike Florio of PRO FOOTBALL TALK. Winston "initiated the move" after the NFL announced last week that it had suspended him for three games for inappropriately touching an Uber driver, but it is "nevertheless possible that the agents were the ones who decided to move on." Winston must "wait five days before hiring a new agent." It is "unclear whether he moved on from Genske and Felder knowing who would replace them," or whether Winston simply "decided to make a change." If Winston "doesn’t have someone else already lined up, he could have trouble finding new representation" (PROFOOTBALLTALK.com, 7/2).
CONSISTENTLY CONFLICTING? YAHOO SPORTS' Shalise Manza Young wrote Winston's suspension brings back a "familiar question: What does it take for the NFL to follow its own rule on punishment when it comes to such situations?" For a league that "seems to care about two things: money and optics, the NFL continues to make itself look terrible, particularly in the eyes of female fans, when it comes to handling domestic violence and sexual assault issues" (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 6/30). In Chicago, Steve Rosenbloom wrote under the header, "With Jameis Winston Decision, NFL Once Again Means Noted For Loathsomeness" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 6/30). THE MMQB's Albert Breer wrote it is "fair to question whether the NFL should be settling cases like it did" with Winston, but it is "abundantly clear why both sides worked to get there." For the NFL, the "idea of spending another year-plus in a legal fight with a prominent player ... wasn’t very appealing." For Winston, it "wasn’t either -- not with Tampa Bay looking at having to make" a $20.1M decision on his "fifth-year option in about eight months." Cooperation "has its privileges." That is "just the reality of it" (SI.com, 7/2). In Tampa, Tom Jones wrote the situation "comes down to this: The Bucs hope they can survive the public relations hit long enough for Winston to outplay his troubles." Jones: "Just like Ray Lewis. Just like Ben Roethlisberger. Just like Kobe Bryant" (TAMPA BAY TIMES, 6/30).
