Throughout the NFL’s history, we’ve had our fair share of clown princes.
asserted
we → have → princes
That history extends back, through Pat McAfee and Chad Ochocinco, past Jared Allen and John Randle to Jim McMahon, Steve McMichael, John Riggins, Alex Karras and Billy “White Shoes” Johnson.
asserted
history → extend → McMahon
There’s probably something deeply insightful to say about the need for goofballs in a sport characterized by militarized order and a seriousness that borders on self-parody, but what’s important now is how we reflect on these chosen merrymakers.
asserted
we → ’ → merrymakers
The current clown prince is Jameis Winston, who has become the New York Giants’ starting quarterback after a brutal knee injury to Jaxson Dart.
asserted
who → become → Dart
Though the Giants have traded for former Vikings first-round pick and third-string quarterback JJ McCarthy, all indications at the moment are that Winston will continue to start.
asserted
Winston → trade → moment
His 2015 fumble against Oregon in the Rose Bowl was itself an act of unintentional comedy; a Heisman winner who couldn’t help but stumble backwards and flop like a beached whale.
asserted
who → help → whale
That was the culmination of an up-and-down but nevertheless winning season at Florida State, after which the Tampa Bay Buccaneers selected him with the No 1 overall pick in the NFL draft.
asserted
Buccaneers → win → draft
At the time, Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht praised Winston’s leadership and football character, doubling down on that in 2017 by adding that Winston was “the best leader I think I’ve ever been around – in anything”.
asserted
I → praise → anything
More than that, Winston is magnetic, effusively charismatic in a way that spins even his missteps into successes.
asserted
that → spin → successes
He has turned an awkward pre-game speech about eating Ws into part of his brand and has made light of an admittedly bizarre incident where he was accused of stealing crab legs while in college.
asserted
he → turn → college
And his playing style matches this persona.
asserted
style → match → persona
He plays bozo ball; he habitually throws the ball deep, assured that someone is down there to catch it.
asserted
someone → play → it
In the past 20 years, 92 quarterbacks have thrown at least 1,000 total NFL passes.
asserted
quarterbacks → throw → passes
The deepest thrower among all of them is Jameis Winston, whose passes have traveled 10.73 yards downfield on average.
asserted
passes → travel → them
Of that 92-quarterback group, he ranks sixth in pick-six percentage (0.4%) and third in combined touchdown-interception rate at 8.3%.
asserted
he → rank → %
He is the author of the only “30-30” season in NFL history, throwing at least 30 touchdowns along with 30 interceptions.
asserted
He → throw → interceptions
He makes big plays, just not necessarily for the team he plays for.
asserted
he → make → team
Fox Sports has recognized that; last year, it made Winston part of its Super Bowl coverage and then covered that coverage – worth it, evidently, as that approach earned recognition, with some media calling him the true MVP of the Super Bowl given how viral his antics became.
asserted
antics → recognize → Bowl
This year, Fox Sports decided he would be one of the centerpieces of its World Cup coverage.
asserted
he → decide → coverage
He’s funny, appealing and goofy.
asserted
He → ’ → ?
More than a few people predict that after Winston’s NFL career is over, he’s going to be a media megastar.
asserted
he → predict → ?
---
Sir John Falstaff is an intriguing character in Shakespeare; one of the most beloved fools in the canon, Falstaff’s indiscretions are often overlooked by those who adore him.
asserted
who → overlook → him
Falstaff engages in armed robbery, takes bribes from nobles, steals valor, purposefully endangers the poor and steals their wages on top of it.
asserted
Falstaff → engage → it
And no analysis of his lovable on-screen persona is complete without addressing his alleged treatment of women.
asserted
analysis → address → women
When it comes to off-field indiscretions, Winston is best known for an incident where he is alleged to have assaulted Erica Kinsman in December 2012 during his time at Florida State, something Winston denies. To say authorities botched the investigation would be a disservice to the concept of botching.
asserted
authorities → come → botching
Police are alleged to have warned Kinsman to stop pursuing a claim, saying her life would be “made miserable” because Tallahassee was a “football town”.
uncertain
Tallahassee → allege → claim
Later, we would learn that the lead investigating officer had been employed as private security for the Seminole Boosters, a fundraising arm for Florida State athletics.
asserted
officer → learn → athletics
FSU would later settle a lawsuit that Kinsman had brought over the allegations.
asserted
Kinsman → settle → allegations
Winston was never charged with a crime over the allegations.
asserted
Winston → charge → allegations
Meanwhile, Winston was the subject of another allegation at FSU after a woman who had sex with him reported to a victim’s advocate that the encounter was “of such a nature that she felt violated or felt that she needed to seek some type of counseling for her emotions about the experience”.
asserted
she → have → experience
While the woman did not accuse Winston of rape, some outlets characterized the incident as another allegation of sexual assault.
asserted
outlets → accuse → assault
A prosecutor said that based on what she was told of what happened, Winston had not committed a crime.
asserted
Winston → say → crime
When the Buccaneers drafted Winston, they claimed to have conducted a thorough investigation into his character.
asserted
they → draft → character
They interviewed 75 people with experience of Winston.
asserted
They → interview → Winston
They never made contact with Kinsman or her attorney.
asserted
They → make → Kinsman
“If he wasn’t a good guy, we wouldn’t have used the first pick on him,” Licht said.
asserted
Licht → use → him
A year later, Winston was accused of groping an Uber driver by grabbing her crotch.
asserted
Winston → accuse → crotch
The NFL ultimately concluded that Winston touched the driver in a sexual manner, discounting testimony from Winston’s friends given inconsistencies in witness statements from those the quarterback claimed were with him at the time.
asserted
quarterback → conclude → time
Winston was not criminally charged over these allegations either.
asserted
Winston → charge → allegations
While not admitting guilt, he said: “I would like to say I’m sorry to the Uber driver for the position I put you in.
asserted
I → admit → you
…and 27 more, not listed.
The Aporia
