Buccaneers' Jameis Winston: Looking to reduce number of pass attempts

Winston is putting up the ball at an inordinately high rate to date in 2016, something the Bucs are looking to rectify, Kevin Patra of NFL.com reports.

Analysis:

The second-year signal-caller has already tallied two games with 50-plus pass attempts in 2016, a mark he only reached once all of his rookie campaign. The extra drop-backs have unsurprisingly resulted in more turnovers, as Winston has six interceptions and two lost fumbles through the first three weeks. He's also been much less efficient in the two games, both losses, that have featured the elevated number of throws, as he's seen a 14-point drop in completion percentage (down to 57.3 from 71.9) and almost three yards less per attempt (down to 5.89 from 8.78) when compared to his numbers in those respective categories in the season-opening victory over the Falcons. Head coach Dirk Koetter has expressed a desire for a much more balanced attack leading up to the Week 4 tilt against the Broncos, but achieving that will be challenging without the steady chain-moving presence of Doug Martin (hamstring) in the backfield for what figures to be at least another two games. Although Charles Sims did provide some reason for optimism by averaging a solid 4.2 YPC in Week 3 versus the Rams, the going on the ground figures to be a lot tougher against a stalwart Denver front seven come Sunday, which could lead to another heavy workload for Winston's arm.