Bucs tap Ryan Fitzpatrick as starter, but Panthers must prepare for 2 QBs anyway

Ryan Fitzpatrick will start at quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers against the Carolina Panthers on Sunday. That much, we know.

How long his leash will be is yet to be determined.

The Bucs benched former No. 1 overall draft pick Jameis Winston in the third quarter on Sunday after he threw four interceptions against the Cincinnati Bengals. In his stead, Fitzpatrick completed 11-of-15 passes for 194 yards and two touchdowns, and nearly completed an 18-point comeback.

Tampa Bay coach Dirk Koetter announced the team’s starting quarterback Monday afternoon, but given his propensity to play both players, the Panthers could still prepare to see Fitzpatrick and Winston.

“It’s what you have to do sometimes. We had two quarterbacks that played yesterday,” Panthers defensive coordinator Eric Washington said before the announcement. “As a coordinator, you have to be aware of the individual skill set of that person that’s competing and just also understand how he fits into the offensive concept and their philosophy.

“They may have had their issues but both of them can light it up and produce a lot of yards and a lot of points at any given time. We’ve seen that from them this year.”

Fitzpatrick started Tampa Bay’s first three games while Winston served a three-game suspension, passing for at least 400 yards and three touchdowns in each contest. The “Fitzmagic” wore off in Week 4, when he started but was eventually replaced by Winston after a lackluster effort against the Chicago Bears.

But Winston didn’t seize the starting job when given the opportunity. He threw at least two interceptions in each of the four games he played in this season and is tied for the league lead in interceptions despite attempting at least 102 fewer passes than the two players he’s tied with.

No matter who’s in, Panthers coach Ron Rivera said Tampa Bay’s league-leading 467.6 yards of offense per game, including a league-high 376.3 yards through the air, must be respected.

“I just think they’re going to make a decision going one way or the other but either way, I still feel like they’ve got a tremendous offense and explosive ability,” Rivera said Monday. “You’ve seen that they can score every time and coach Koetter’s going to make a decision he thinks is best for (them) to compete against us. So as far as we’re concerned, we’ll prepare for both quarterbacks until we know who’s the starter. But again, we’ll try to prepare for what they do and we’ll go from there.”

Koetter did not say whether Fitzpatrick would start for the remainder of the season, but he might see plenty of opportunities to air it out against the Panthers (eighth in the NFL against the run), who could shut down Tampa Bay’s 28th-ranked rushing offense and force a more one-dimensional game plan.