Jameis Winston is now being investigated by the NFL for allegedly groping an Uber driver


Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston is being investigated by the NFL, BuzzFeed News reported Friday, after an Uber driver alleged that Winston groped her during a ride in March 2016. The driver claimed that after picking Winston up around 2 a.m. in Scottsdale, Arizona, the quarterback grabbed her crotch while they were waiting for food at a drive-thru window.
The driver, Kate, declined to provide her last name to BuzzFeed News for fear of retribution from NFL fans. She said that Winston sat in the front seat of her car and was the only passenger for the ride, and that he held his hand over her crotch for several seconds. She said he moved only after she "looked up in shock and said, 'What's up with that?'"
In a statement to BuzzFeed News, Uber confirmed that Kate had submitted a complaint report to the company after the alleged assault. Winston "is NOT safe for other female drivers," Kate wrote to Uber at the time. The company told BuzzFeed News that an account under the name Jameis Winston had been "permanently removed" from the app that evening, and that "the behavior the driver reported is disturbing and wrong."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
In a statement Friday after BuzzFeed News published its story, Winston did not deny that his Uber account had been suspended, but called the groping accusation "false" and said that he believed Kate "was confused as to the number of passengers in the car and who was sitting next to her."
In December 2016, Winston settled a lawsuit with Erica Kinsman, who alleged that Winston raped her when they were students at Florida State University in 2012. Winston was never formally charged by the Tallahassee Police Department for the alleged incident, and an FSU investigation found that the school's star quarterback had not violated its code of conduct.
Read the full story at BuzzFeed News.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Kelly O'Meara Morales is a staff writer at The Week. He graduated from Sarah Lawrence College and studied Middle Eastern history and nonfiction writing amongst other esoteric subjects. When not compulsively checking Twitter, he writes and records music, subsists on tacos, and watches basketball.
-
Why Turkey's Kurdish insurgents are laying down their arms
Under the Radar The PKK said its aims can now be 'resolved through democratic politics'
-
Book reviews: 'Girl on Girl: How Pop Culture Turned a Generation of Women Against Themselves' and 'Notes to John'
Feature The aughts' toxic pop culture and Joan Didion's most private pages
-
The FDA plans to embrace AI agencywide
In the Spotlight Rumors are swirling about a bespoke AI chatbot being developed for the FDA by OpenAI
-
Warren Buffet announces surprise retirement
speed read At the annual meeting of Berkshire Hathaway, the billionaire investor named Vice Chairman Greg Abel his replacement
-
Trump calls Amazon's Bezos over tariff display
Speed Read The president was not happy with reports that Amazon would list the added cost from tariffs alongside product prices
-
Markets notch worst quarter in years as new tariffs loom
Speed Read The S&P 500 is on track for its worst month since 2022 as investors brace for Trump's tariffs
-
Tesla Cybertrucks recalled over dislodging panels
Speed Read Almost every Cybertruck in the US has been recalled over a stainless steel panel that could fall off
-
Crafting emporium Joann is going out of business
Speed Read The 82-year-old fabric and crafts store will be closing all 800 of its stores
-
Trump's China tariffs start after Canada, Mexico pauses
Speed Read The president paused his tariffs on America's closest neighbors after speaking to their leaders, but his import tax on Chinese goods has taken effect
-
Chinese AI chatbot's rise slams US tech stocks
Speed Read The sudden popularity of a new AI chatbot from Chinese startup DeepSeek has sent U.S. tech stocks tumbling
-
US port strike averted with tentative labor deal
Speed Read The strike could have shut down major ports from Texas to Maine